


Faceless

by Dragongoddess13



Series: Ghost Whisperer AU [11]
Category: Game of Thrones (TV)
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, F/M, Fluff and Smut, Ghost Whisperer AU, The Faceless Men
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-24
Updated: 2020-08-19
Packaged: 2021-03-03 19:07:16
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 27,097
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24900553
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dragongoddess13/pseuds/Dragongoddess13
Summary: It had been their first case together, the one that brought them into the each other's orbit. They rarely talked about it, the events of that final night still haunting Arya to a point. In all honesty it still haunts Gendry too, but he doesn't mention it, doesn't talk about the exhausting interviews or any new information they might find. He knows she still thinks about that night, still worries about Terry, he does too, and he doesn't want to upset her. Unfortunately for both of them, they don't have the luxury of pretending it's over.Valar Morghulis
Relationships: Arya Stark/Gendry Waters
Series: Ghost Whisperer AU [11]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1715362
Comments: 117
Kudos: 210





	1. Date Night

Faceless

Chapter 1: Date Night

xXx

Gendry takes a deep breath as he stops at Arya’s front door. It’s ridiculous really, he has no reason to feel nervous. After being stuck in Storm’s end for two additional days there’s very little they haven’t talked about or seen of each other. In fact, that whole first day was spent in bed and if they weren’t napping or getting up for food, they were necking like teenagers. They had even talked a bit, though they hadn’t broached the subject that had come up in the heat of the moment. That was mostly because Gendry had forgotten about it. He would have to remember to ask her at some point, it seemed like kind of a big thing to not mention it previously. Not that it changed anything between them. 

Gendry pushed down his nerves and rang the doorbell, waiting patiently for her to answer. When she finally does, she’s got a look of confusion on her face that quickly shifts to delight at the sight of the little potted plant in his hands. She had on numerous occasions mentioned her distaste for cut flowers, informing him in no uncertain terms that it’s a waste of a perfectly good plant. So, remembering that, he’d run to the nursery a few blocks from his flat, the nursery that had just opened in time for the Spring Thaw and purchased a blue watercolor orchid.

“You remembered.” she coos, holding her hands out for the pot. He passes it over and she takes it happily. “But why are you ringing the doorbell?” she asks, turning to walk into the house. He follows, closing the door behind him. She heads for the screened in porch, placing the pot on a garden cart where several other indoor plants are waiting for her to work on them. 

“I just thought I’d do this proper is all.” he replies. And proper he had. He’s wearing his best suit, a black one he knows she likes on him and a silk tie Davos and Marya had gotten him for his birthday one year. Marya had told him the blue brought out his eyes and Arya had agreed the first time she saw it on him. He’d even made reservations at a restaurant he knew she liked. 

Arya on the other hand was wearing a black form fitting dress with a long sleeved lace overlay and honestly, Gendry wasn’t so sure he wanted to go out anymore. As he studied the lines of her body, all the way down to her bear feet, he had to remind himself that this had been his idea, a nice, romantic dinner date out on the town to officially kick off the progression of their relationship. Arya had told him he didn’t have to go to so much trouble, that the time they spent in Storm’s End was more than enough, but Gendry was more traditional than he let on, and he very much wanted to treat her to the kind of things he knew she was accustomed to. 

So, instead of telling her she was right and taking her upstairs to peel the dress off of her, Gendry held his tongue as she teased him about being so traditional, and who knew Gendry Waters was such a romantic. He helps her into her coat at the door and together they exit the house, making their way down to his car. 

“So Waters, where are you taking me tonight?” Arya asks as he slips into the driver’s seat. He had only told her to dress nice, nothing more and he could tell she was desperate to know what he had planned. 

Gendry smirks. “Well, I may have gotten reservations at the Iceberg Lounge.” he tells her, rather proud of himself. The Iceberg Lounge was one of the most exclusive restaurants in the city and he had only just managed to call in time to fill a reservation that had been cancelled at the last minute. Arya had mentioned how much she loved the place, which she regularly went to when her parents came to visit or her whole family was in town.

“You did not.” she grins widely. 

“I did.” he nods, pulling out of her driveway. The drive over is relatively easy and Gendry pulls the car into the parking lot, looking confused. “Um… where is everyone?” he asks, looking around the nearly empty parking lot. Arya shrugs, getting out of the car. He follows and together they make their way to the front door. As they near it opens, an older man looking rumpled and stressed stepping out. 

“Arya, darling I didn’t know you had a reservation tonight.” the man says dramatically. Gendry gets a good look at him as they stop before him. He’s older, hair greying around the temples, and he’s without a suit jacket, his sleeves rolled up to his elbows. 

“Neither did I. It was a surprise.” she tells him. She then turns to gesture to Gendry. “Gendry, this is Christian, he’s the owner and operator of the Iceberg Lounge.” 

“Pleasure to meet you.” Christian replies, shaking his hand. “I’m honored you would choose my establishment as a surprise for one of my favorite patrons.” his smile is strained despite his attempt at light conversation, a fact that they both notice. 

“And yet, it doesn’t appear that you're open.” Gendry replies. Christian deflates. 

“We were, and then some pipe in the freezer decided to start leaking, freezing the gas pipes until they cracked open.” he explains. “We are unfortunately closed for the foreseeable future.” he looks pained. “I’m so sorry.” he continues looking between them. “I promise to make this up to you.” he insists. Arya shakes her head. 

“Don’t worry about it Christian. We’re just glad everyone is alright.” Arya replies, Gendry nodding in agreement. 

Christian sighs. “As soon as we’re ready to reopen I’ll call you about your reservation.” he promises. Arya thanks him as does Gendry and they leave the man to deal with his own as they head back to the car. 

xXx

Gendry is pouting. It would be concerning if it wasn’t so damned cute. Gods help her why she loves that broody look so much, but on Gendry it just worked. It was part of his appeal, his charm. 

“So, plan b.” he says, pulling into traffic. “Where to?” 

She’s not really sure. She had kind of had her heart set on the Iceberg Lounge since he first mentioned it back at the house. She wouldn’t tell him that of course, lest his pout get any worse. As they pull up to an intersection, a neon sign across the road catches her attention. 

“There.” she points across the road. Gendry looks out through the windshield then back at her confused. 

“A grocery store?” he asks. “You want to spend our first official date running errands?” 

Arya smirks, leaning over the center consul and pecking him on the lips. “Just shut up and drive.” she tells him, a smug sort of teasing in her tone. Gendry sighs, shaking his head, but when the light turns green he drives through the intersection and turns into the parking lot. He puts on a good show of being put out by her behavior, but he follows her nonetheless as she bounces excitedly out of the car into the store. 

“What are we doing here Arry?” he asks as she shoves the hand basket at him coming through the door. 

“Shopping, what else?” she laughs, pulling him through the aisles of the market. At almost eight o’clock it’s nearly deserted save for a few stragglers, mostly university students if the states of their carts are anything to go by. 

Arya tugs him toward the back of the store, stopping in the open freezer section. She digs through the packs of steaks pulling out two and dropping them into the basket. She then begins the trek toward produce. 

“Are you trying to tell me something?” he asks. She peeks over her shoulder at him.

“Maybe, or maybe I just so happened to pull the grill out of the shed this morning.” she tells him. 

That stops him short. “Oh really.” she nods. “Well why didn’t you say so.” 

Arya laughs, throwing her head back as they walk. “It’s a good thing you’re cute.” she tells him. 

They move quickly around the grocery store picking out what they need and then head back to Arya’s house where Gendry goes full alpha male, shucking his tie and suit jacket and rolling up his sleeves as he fires up the grill on the back patio. While he does that, Arya sets up the little metal firepit and lights it then grabs a fleece blanket from inside and gets comfortable in the little outdoor kitchen area. 

“If I tell you a secret, will you promise not to tell Christian?” Arya says sometime later, watching Gendry work at the outdoor counter. 

“Of course.” he replies. 

“This is much better than the Iceberg Lounge.” 

Gendry looks up from the onion he’s cutting, smiling at her. He leans across the counter, kissing her soundly. “Medium right?” he asks as he pulls away, returning his attention to the grill. He takes a sip of the wine she poured him and pulls up one of the steaks to get a look at the bottom. 

Arya gasps mockingly. “You remembered.” she sounds pleased. Gendry laughs, flipping one of the steaks onto a plate to rest. They sit in silence as he finishes and then takes their plates to the little table near the fire pit. “This is perfect.” Arya tells him. “The perfect first date.” 

Gendry looks pleased. “I’m glad you think so. I was… hoping for something different, obviously, but it worked out.” 

“It did. Honestly, I like staying in with you.” 

Gendry huffs. “I like staying in with you too. Although, I have to admit, if you’re going to dress like that everytime we go out, I might just have to work on my social skills.” 

Arya laughs. “I’ll make you a deal. I’ll dress like this whenever we have to go somewhere you don’t want to.” 

He grins, finishing off his wine. His expression sobers a bit as they eat and eventually he speaks up again; “Can I ask you something?” he says. She looks at him, nodding. “Last week in Storm’s End you said something and I guess I let it slip my mind, but I’m curious to say the least.” he hesitates. “You said you couldn’t get pregnant? What does that mean?” 

Arya heaves a heavy sigh and sits back in her chair, pulling the blanket around her again. “Exactly what it sounds like. I can’t get pregnant. I had a hysterectomy when I was eighteen.” 

“Because of your… abilities?” he asks. 

She shakes her head. “Oh no, nothing like that. Growing up I had really bad periods. I once passed out the cramps were so bad and the menstrual blood was so heavy I was anemic for a while. So, when I turned eighteen I broke my mother’s heart and had a complete hysterectomy.” 

“I’m sorry.” he says and she shakes her head again. 

“Don’t be, I’ve come to terms with it. Yeah, it sucked at first, cause I really wanted a big family like the one I grew up in, but at the end of the day it was more important for me to be able to live.” she shrugs. “Besides, I never found anyone to start a family with anyway and I’m kind of old to consider having children now. I mean sure it would have been possible, but that’s a lot of risk to consider.” she fiddles with her wine glass a moment before; “What about you? I’ve never heard you talk about having kids.” 

“Eh, I like kids, don’t  _ love  _ the idea of having them. I think if we had met sooner though I could get behind the idea of a big family. Adopt a whole bunch of little ones, but as it is, I’m a bit old for any of that myself.” 

“You have got to stop saying shit like that.” Arya finally replies after a moment of staring at him blankly. “If I still had ovaries they’d be exploding right now.” 

Gendry throws his head back and laughs, full and deep and honest and it’s probably the most beautiful sound she’s ever heard. Arya had spent years struggling to find a balance in her life between her career, her abilities and her social life and after all the struggle here comes Gendry Waters, strutting in like he had always belonged there. He basically just admitted that had they met years earlier, he had little doubt she would be the reason he changed his mind. She would still be the one for him even then. This wasn’t the first time he had implied such a thing and she certainly hoped it wasn’t the last. 

Arya shrugs the blanket off and crosses the small sitting area, sliding into his lap. As if on instinct his arms come up around her, holding her against him. There’s no hesitation as she leans into him, tasting the sweet wine on his lips. He hums against her, a little smile tilting his lips. When she pulls away he looks at her with a sort of awe that melts her heart and sends her stomach into somersaults. 

Gendry leans forward, pulling her against him as goes. She goes willingly, falling into him like he’s the only place she ever wants to be. The kiss this time is slow and languid, lazy in a sort of way that calms her racing heart, but not the butterflies in her stomach. His hand moves up her thigh, slipping under the hem of her dress. Arya leans back against him, splaying lazy across his lap, her knees hooking over the arm of his chair. They take their time, just enjoying the moment, enjoying the night. 

Arya thinks for just a moment that she would like to spend the rest of her life right here, just lounged out across Gendry lap, kissing him, touching him, feeling his every reaction to her. So of course, just because she thought it, they’re interrupted. 

“What the…?” Gendry says, pulling away abruptly. He stares off behind her in surprise, maybe even concern and she turns to see for herself, even as Gendry begins to attempt to free himself beneath her. 

“Just friends, huh?” Jon asks as Davos and several officers step out of the house behind him, weapons drawn. 


	2. Harrenhal

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know a few people did not like the direction I took with Arya's ability to bear children, some were very rude about it, others gave a perfectly reasonable explanation, so to the second group, this is not the end of the conversation about it, it never was. Every time I tried to put everything in all at once however, I hit a road block continuing with the story. It was too much at once, it derailed the narrative, so I've moved it to a future story. 
> 
> Thank you for reading! Sorry if there was any undue stress on the subject, I probably should have put this note at the end of the last chapter, but I didn't really think about it until it was brought up.

Faceless

Chapter 2: Harrenhal

xXx

Jon Stark-Targaryen will love and cherish these moments until he’s old and grey and feeble. The laughter of his daughters as they color in their little books, the smile on his wife’s face as she jokingly teases them for their choice in colors. 

“Peoples can be blue if they want Muma.” Darcy states, leaving no room for argument. “Right papa?” 

“Of course baby.” he agrees. Ygritte gives him a speaking look, one that he knows all too well. She sees it too, as well as anyone can, his baby girls have him wrapped around their little fingers and there’s not a thing for it. He wouldn’t have it any other way. He wonders if he looks as smitten when he looks at Darcy and Tala as his uncle Ned did looking at all of his children when they were growing up. He thinks he might. 

“So, have you talked to Arya lately?” Jon asks as casually as he can manage. He should know better than to try with Ygritte. She’s always been able to read him, would have made a damn fine cop for it too. He looks up when she doesn’t answer right away and seeing the unimpressed look on her face he knows he’s been had. He sighs. “Fine, did Arya tell you what happened down in Storm’s End, or why she had to go along with Gendry on his little trip in the first place?” 

Ygritte shakes her head, reclaiming her seat at the kitchen table. “All she said was that he needed her help with a ghost thing. That’s all. And as for why they were there longer than they planned, there was a freak spring ice storm over night and they got iced in.” she explains, her tone making it clear she doesn’t like where he’s going with this. He can’t help it though. 

Arya is like his sister, she always has been. When the worst of his broody moods got the best of him growing up, Arya was there to make him laugh and pull him out of his own head. She meant the world to him, more so than any of his other cousins and he wasn’t ashamed to admit that. He only wanted the best for her, especially after everything she had been through and he wasn’t convinced Gendry was. 

“I don’t understand what your problem with Gendry is.” Ygritte says as though reading his mind. “He’s handsome and intelligent and he looks at Arya like she hung the moon. You should be thrilled there’s someone else in her life like that.” 

Jon heaves a heavy sigh. “I just… there was a moment or two, still kind of is… where I thought, think… ah hell, I don’t know. He might be dirty, okay. And I don’t want Arya to get hurt.”

“Do you honestly believe that?” she asks, looking a touched concerned maybe even startled. 

“I don’t know. Someone had me pretty well convinced that he was for awhile, but some new information came to light and… well let’s just say I’m not as convinced as before.” 

“Well that’s good. I don’t want to have to watch you lose Arya.” 

Jon watches her confused. “Why would I lose Arya? Because of Gendry?” she nods. “What makes you think she would choose Gendry over me?” 

Ygritte stares at him like he’s grown a second head. “Have you really not noticed?” 

“Apparently not.” 

“Jon…” she sighs. “After a lifetime of loving people but having to keep her distance out of fear that they will let her down, Arya has finally found someone who knows what she can do and thinks it’s the most amazing thing ever. Not because he can exploit it, or because there’s some benefit to him, but because it’s something that  _ she  _ can do. If someone else had walked into the precinct that day to help, I guarantee you Gendry would not be spending the majority of his free time with them. He sees past what she can do, he sees  _ her _ .” she pauses for a breath. “Jon, if you think after years of being rejected because no one could ever see past her abilities, she's just going to give him up because you think something is going on, you’ve got a rude awakening on the horizon.” 

He doesn’t know what to say to that. Has he really missed all of the things Ygritte said. Did he really not notice how much they had come to mean to each other beyond friendship. Perhaps he has, but one thing is for sure, if it turns out he’s right about Gendry, he’ll kill him for hurting Arya that way. 

The truth is though, that Jon really isn’t so sure anymore. It seemed so cut and dry when he was first transferred into the precinct. Internal Affairs had contacted him about his new assignment, questioned what he thought about Gendry and then, after laying out Gendry’s family tree for him, asked if he wanted to be their informant, keep an eye on his new partner. I.A. knew there was a leak in the department somewhere, had been for a while from what they could tell, it only made sense that the grandson of a known crime boss would be it. Why else would he have a different name. None of them seemed to know about Gendry’s history with his family though, at least that’s the impression he got when he told them that Gendry had been thrown into the system when his mother died. 

There were still a few members of the task force that believed it was possible, anything was really, and Jon was more open minded about the idea himself, but most everyone had readjusted, started looking elsewhere and in the meantime, it was Jon’s job to keep tabs on Gendry until they had more to go on. He didn’t particularly like the job, but if Gendry was dirty it would be worth it to put a bad cop behind bars. He had never considered that Gendry and Arya would become friends and the more he thought about it, the more he wished he had nipped it in the bud when he had the chance. Not that Arya would have listened to him, she was so damned stubborn. 

Jon is pulled from thoughts by his phone, buzzing across the kitchen counter. He gets up to answer it, catching Davos’ name on the caller ID. 

“Stark.” he answers. 

“Jon, I need you to get to Harrenhal motel downtown. Now.” Davos says without the normal greeting. Jon hesitates, not used to the brusk tone from the older man. Davos takes it as an opportunity to continue. “Have you spoken to Gendry since this afternoon?” 

That snaps him out of it rather quickly. “No, not since we left work. Why?” 

“He’s not answering his phone.” Davos explains. “Never mind, just get down here.”

“What’s going on?” Jon asks, moving to the key rack hanging on the wall near the garage entrance. He pulls his car keys off the rack and then his badge from the basket just underneath. He slips it on his belt and then quickly makes his way into the home office where he pulls his service gun from a lockbox in the closet. 

As Jon does all of this Davos replies; “It’ll be easier to show you rather than explain it over the phone. Just hurry.” 

“Alright, I’m leaving now.” Jon replies reentering the kitchen. He hangs up as Ygritte stands and Jon walks past her, kissing Darcy then Tala on the head. “Daddy has to go back to work, you both behave for your mother.” 

“Yes papa.” they say in sync. 

“What’s going on?” Ygritte asks as she walks him to the door. 

“I don’t know. Davos said it was too hard to explain on the phone.” 

She looks worried. “Just be careful.” she tells him, kissing him soundly before he can get too far ahead of himself. 

“I will, I love you. I’ll try to call if I’m going to be too late.” she nods and then he’s gone, ducking out through the garage entrance and into his car. 

xXx

Harrenhal is a motel in the middle of downtown King’s Landing. It’s only lasted in this neighborhood for so long, surrounded by skyscrapers and ritzy department stores, because the worst humanity has to offer is easily concealed behind it’s tacky, outdated walls. There isn’t a week that goes by that a patrol car doesn’t get called to the area, looking for a perp or flushing out junkies. 

When Jon pulls into the parking lot of the two story motel, there’s a line of patrol cars and police tape everywhere. Patrol men stand around taking notes and questioning people and several CSU techs are donning protective gear. Jon parks and walks up to the police line, flashing his badge at the patrolman standing guard, keeping the rubberneckers at bay. 

“What the hell is going on?” Jon asks as he walks up on Davos and Podrick. They share a look before Davos gently guides him toward the building. 

“Like I said, it’ll be better to show you.” he explains. 

The building is two stories and shaped like a hollowed out square with just enough missing from one side to accommodate a three way driveway out onto the main street. Davos leads him to a set of stairs in the far corner near the check in office. He can see the manager standing off to the side with a couple of detectives, pointing and gesturing around as he talks at rapid fire speed. 

On the second floor, Davos guides him toward an open room where two officers stand, one on either side of the door. A CSU tech stands outside the door as well, checking her kit. When she sees them she pulls out protective booties which they both slip on. 

“This is getting unnerving.” Jon admits as he finishes. 

“I wish I could say it’ll get any better, lad.” Davos replies then turns and enters the room. 

Jon isn’t sure what he expects to find. Maybe a dead body, brutally mutilated, maybe several bodies. He expects the scene to be bloody and horrifying, something right out of a horror movie directed by Grey Stormborn himself. Instead he finds something much worse. 

It’s a simple motel room, one king sized bed, a dresser with an old out of date tv on it and a bathroom. Nothing extra added, unless of course you count the hundreds of photos of various sizes tacked to the wall. Jon is confident that they didn’t come with the room, not unless Arya decided to sell her image to Creeps Decorating Plus. He steps closer to one of the walls, mindful of where he puts his feet and lets his eyes take in picture after picture of his cousin. Candid shots taken from a long lens throughout various days, weeks, months, who knew how long. He feels a sick churning in his gut and turns to Davos, Podrick now having joined them. 

“Has anyone called her?” 

Davos shakes his head. “She’s not answering her phone either.”

“They’re most likely together.” Podrick says and despite what Jon may think of Gendry, the idea gives him some comfort. 

“She’ll be safe if they are, but we still need to get a hold of them. In the meantime, we did catch the man responsible.” 

“Wait what?” Jon shakes his head as if to clear. “No, wait, start from the beginning.” 

“It’s quite simple actually. Dispatch got a tip about someone here in the motel planning a robbery of some sort. After what happened with those gangs last year, robbery homicide is on high alert trying to find everyone involved, so they sent a couple of their own out here to check it out. One of them was Detective Delmar who recognized Arya immediately and called us. While they were waiting for backup, the occupant of the room came back and they were able to chase him down and arrest him.” 

“Do we know who he is?” Jon asks. 

“No,” Podrick replies. “And he’s not talking either. I took his finger prints and got a warrant for his DNA fairly quickly. It’s all been sent back to the lab for a rush through.” 

“He’s not just not talking though. He’s practically catatonic.” Davos explains. 

Before anyone can comment further, a uniformed officer steps up into the doorway, slightly short of breath.

“What’s wrong?” Jon asks. 

“The motel manager says our suspect was with two other people, a man and a woman.” the officer explains. 

“So there’s two more people out there stalking my cousin?” Jon asks, though it’s clearly rhetorical. 

Davos curses, turning for the door. “Keep trying to get ahold of Gendry, Payne.” Davos calls over his shoulder. Jon follows him out, followed by the patrolman. As they reach the ground level he calls out to several other officers. “All of you,” he points to a small group standing together comparing notes. “Let’s go! We have two more suspects on the loose.” he tells them and they all jump to action, climbing into their cars as Jon and Davos do the same. Jon pulls the radio off his dash. “Units responding, 1159 Red River Run. I repeat we are going to 1-1-5-9 Red River Run. Be advised there is one civilian and potentially one officer on the premises. We want a silent approach.” various copies rang out across the channel. 

Staying calm is easier said than done. He knows if anything happens to Arya, he’ll never forgive himself. He promised their family he would protect her when he moved down to King’s Landing around the time she was starting Medical School and so far, despite circumstances out of his control, he had managed to do that. But now she was in danger and he hadn’t even known it existed. 

There's only a modicum of relief as they pull up to the house to find Gendry’s car in the driveway. Knowing there’s someone there to protect her is comforting, but he also knows Gendry isn’t invincible. 

“Alright,” Davos speaks softly as they gather on the lawn. We’re going through the front door. Split up and search the house as silently as possible in a standard elimination search.” he turns to Jon, who digs his spare key out and together they move quietly to the front door, weapons drawn. Jon unlocks the door and pushes it open, stepping aside to let the first officer clear the entry way. The next goes in after him and Jon after that. Like a well oiled machine they branch out around the house, quietly calling out clear into their radios as each area is searched and eliminated. 

“Are they even here?” One of the officers asks as they regroup. Another enters from the kitchen still on high alert. 

“Sunroom door is open, sounds like a fire outside the kitchen window.” 

Jon takes point this time and leads the group out the door, stopping short when he catches sight of Arya and Gendry in one of the patio chairs, doing something Jon hasn’t seen her do since he caught her with Elmar Frey in the tenth grade at one of Aunt Catelyn’s parties. It was as horrifying to see now as it was then. 

Gendry notices them first, pulling away and nearly cursing. He struggles to free himself from under her, a laughable concept given their distinct size difference.

“Just friends, huh?” Jon asks as Arya turns to see what’s going on. He can feel the presence of the others filtering out around him, several going out further into the yard to check the little hidey holes Arya’s carefully maintained plants provide. 

“What the hell is going on?” Gendry asks and Jon, caught in the moment replies;

“I could ask you the same.” 

“Fuck off Jon.” Arya’s answer is full of venom, her face red as she turns to Davos. “What is going on?” 

Davos ever the calm presence replies; “We’ll explain everything, both of you should come inside though. It’ll be safer.”

“Safer?” Gendry questions already turning to check on Arya. He’s got her headed for the house before Jon can register what’s going on, his body between her and the yard behind them. Jon thinks if circumstances were different he might appreciate how quick Gendry is to protect her. But things are just the way they are and Jon holsters his gun, following them into the house. 

xXx

“At the risk of repeating myself, what the fuck is going on?” Arya asks as they make it into the living room. Davos gestures for both of them to take a seat and they do, albeit still peeved. Jon doesn’t know if it’s because of the interruption in general or the way they were interrupted. Either way, he’s not looking forward to the immediate conversations in his future. Including the one where he will have to tell his wife that she was right, not about there being something between Arya and Gendry, they could all see that, but about Arya choosing Gendry. She had never once spoken to him like that, not even in her worst moments. It was unnerving. 

“This evening, a few hours ago, dispatch got a call about a suspicious character in a motel downtown. The tipster claimed that they were planning a robbery of some kind. Detective Delmar and another officer went down to check it out.” Davos explains. “They did not find the makings of a robbery, but a stalker instead.”

“Stalking who?” Gendry asks, but he looks like he already knows the answer, looking back at Arya for a moment. 

“Me?” Arya questions, looking between them. Davos nods and Jon watches as Gendry deflates unconsciously leaning closer to her. “Who?” gone is the righteous fury, replaced now by, not panic, but a distinct fear. 

“We’re not sure.” Jon cuts in. “Delmar and his partner caught one of the suspects, but…”

“One? You mean there’s more than one?” Arya interrupts. 

“We believe there’s three.” Davos explains. “And like Jon said, we caught one of them, but the other two are in the wind. That’s why we showed up the way we did. We thought they might be planning to make a move tonight.”

“We couldn’t get a hold of either of you, so we assumed the worst.” Jon adds. 

They both look confused now. “What are you talking about?” Gendry asks. 

“We called both of you numerous times.”

“I didn’t get any calls.” Gendry tells them, reaching into his pocket. His phone comes out in his hand and he clicks on the screen. “Nothing, no missed calls.” he says. 

“Wait a minute.” Arya speaks up, looking over his shoulder. “You don’t have a signal.” 

“I always have a signal here?” Gendry replies fiddling with the phone as though he could fix it just by tapping at the screen. 

Arya shrugs. “The signal has been spotty lately. I don’t know why.” 

“When did that start?” Davos asks. 

“Um…” she stops to think about it. “Well, there was the week… you know.” she directs to Gendry. He nods. “And then the week after that while we were planning the trip to Storm’s End.” 

“Is that why you took so long to answer sometimes?” she nods

“It was still acting up when you came to pick me up that Friday and then now, so about three weeks give or take.” she pauses, catching the wait look they all share. “Why, do you think it means something?” 

“Possibly.” Davos replies. 

“There are devices one could use to disrupt cell signal. You can buy them at any electronics store and they aren’t that difficult to make either.” Gendry explains. 

“Implying that someone is trying to cut me off.” her voice is a bit warbled and she’s clearly struggling with herself to remain calm. 

“It’s a possibility.” Jon tells her as gently as he can manage. Arya sighs heavily, standing from the sofa and storming off to the front door. She picks her clutch up off the table beside it, digging around until she pulls out her phone. She swipes at the screen then clicks it off, shoving it back in her bag. She turns, walking back over but not sitting down. 

“What now then?” 

“Protective custody would be best.” Davos says. 

Arya huffs, plopping down on the sofa again. 

“I know that this sucks, Arya, but we need to be sure of your safety above anything else.” Jon tells her. She shakes her head, standing yet again, this time much slower. 

“How lucky I am.” she mutters under her breath, walking passed them and back into the kitchen. It’s nearly eleven now, and after a full day's work the exhaustion is wearing on all of them. 

“So, what’s the plan?” Gendry asks, looking distinctly uncomfortable. For a moment Jon thinks it might be because Arya has left him alone with them, but his occasional glances back everytime he hears a noise in the kitchen tell Jon that it’s because Arya is too far away, out of sight but far from out of mind. 

“You’ll be here tonight?” Davos questions. Gendry nods. “Then you and Jon walk the perimeter of the house, lock it up tight. I’ll have a patrol unit set out in the driveway to keep an eye out. In the morning you come in and we’ll read you in on the case.” Gendry nods in agreement, getting up as Davos does. He looks between the younger men, the warning clear, don’t start anything he’ll have to finish for them. 

Davos leaves, taking the patrolmen out with him. True to his word, one car stays behind. Arya comes out of the kitchen a moment later, her shoes in her hand. She grabs her clutch off the table where she dropped it. 

“The dishes are done and one of the officers put the grill away and put the fire out for me.” she tells them, heading for the stairs. “I’m going to bed.” 

“Alright, Jon and I are going to lock up the house, then I’ll be up.” Gendry explains and she nods her understanding, absently reaching up and kissing him before making the trek upstairs. When she’s gone, they turn and head out the front door. 

“It might be best if we move her to a safe house.” Jon says as they carefully inspect every window. 

“Feel free to tell her that.” Gendry mutters, crouching down to get a good look at the basement windows. Jon stares at the back of his head incredulously. 

“Seriously?” he questions, unable to stop himself. 

Gendry stands up and continues moving down the side of the house. “It was your idea, why wouldn’t you tell her.” 

Jon huffs. “Right.” he mumbles. Jon doesn’t know what he expects Gendry to do. Grovel maybe, or try to explain himself, not that he really needs to, though Jon isn’t in a logical frame of mind at the moment to understand that. Who is he kidding, he’s never in the right frame of mind when Arya is involved. Ever since he’d heard her scream in the middle of the night when they were children, some dark shadow persisting in scaring her, he had been on high alert for her wellbeing. 

They lock up the back of the house, checking the shed and all the little hidey holes again, then continue on to the other side of the house. They don’t say anything for the rest of the inspection and when they’re done, Gendry turns to head back inside without a word. 

“Will you at least answer me one question?” Jon asks, stopping him short of the door. Gendry turns, clearly giving his consent. “How long has this been going on?” 

“About a week, not that it’s any concern of yours.” Gendry replies. 

Jon scowls. “How is it not any concern of mine? She’s my cousin, practically a sister.” his voice is raised a bit, defensive. Gendry on the other hand is calm, but there’s a rage just beneath the surface that he’s keeping subdued. 

“She’s an adult, Jon, if she wants your opinion she’ll ask for it.” he tells him, voice lethal but calm. “If she wants you to know something she’ll tell you and if I actually gave a damn what you thought, I might encourage her to be more open, but I don’t, so I guess your shit out of luck.” he turns on his heels, heading for the door again.

“Why don’t you?” he doesn’t know why he asks it, it just sort of comes out, but Gendry is all too happy to answer, spinning on his heels once more, the rage even closer to the surface now. 

“You know why.” he replies with a certainty and a finality that puts Jon on edge. This time nothing stops him from entering the house, closing the door behind him with an exclamatory thunk. 

Jon stares at the door until the light goes off behind it, then turns to leave. 


	3. Unseen

Faceless

Chapter 3: Unseen

xXx

Gendry steps back into the house, bolting the door behind him. He flips the porch light on and then the hall lights off, turning toward the stairs. He stops short, the urge to check the house again overwhelming him. So he does, thoroughly searching each room, each nook and cranny and absolutely refusing to think about Jon Stark as he did so. He refused to lend space to a man like Jon Stark in his mind, not while Arya was in danger. Maybe when this was over he would reflect on what he suspected he knew, but for now, he was determined to remain focused on the immediate problem. 

Gendry finishes his search of the first floor and heads upstairs, doing the same in the attic and then the second floor. When that was finished, he made his way to the bedroom, pushing the door open and slipping in. The bedside lamp is on and he looks up to find Arya sitting against the headboard, her arms wrapped around her knees. She’s changed into her pajamas, the little sleep shorts and her Wintertown Timberwolves jersey from High School. 

“Hey,” he says softly, making his way over. He sits beside her on the edge of the bed. “You okay?” 

She shrugs. “I’m not,  _ not  _ okay.” 

Gendry chuckles, leaning over and kissing her on the forehead. “Do you want to talk about it?” she shrugs again. 

“Did Jon tell you anything?” she asks. 

He shakes his head. “I’ll see everything when I go in tomorrow.” 

“I called Micah. Told him I needed the rest of the week off. I want to go with you tomorrow.” 

“I think that’s a good idea.” he tells her. He leans over kissing her again, then gets up, moving around the room to get ready for bed. When he’s done, he climbs in beside Arya, who's now laying down, and reaches over her to switch the lamp off. In the dark they settle down together, Arya on her back as he fits himself against her side, his arm slung over her middle. He feels the gentle rise and fall of her chest, feels her fingers against his arm as she absently raises her hand to run it along his arm almost absently as she drops off to sleep. 

In the morning, Gendry wakes first, leaning over to kiss Arya on the temple. He watches amused as her face scrunches up. They haven’t moved much since they fell asleep, both too exhausted to toss and turn or even dream. At least  _ he  _ didn’t dream. A nice change from the normal strange dreams he’s been having on and off for the last three weeks. He thinks Arya might be having strange dreams too, but she hasn’t said anything and he certainly hasn’t asked. He probably should. 

Arya mutters in her waking stupor, complaining softly at being woken up. He chuckles, the deep rumble passing though his chest and into her side. As if drawn in by the sound she rolls over, facing him, and digs herself into his chest. He smiles. 

“Time to get up, love.” it never ceases to amaze him how a woman who is so active, so full of energy, could have so much trouble getting up in the morning. It was perfectly fine with him. He could spend the rest of his life having a lie in with her. Now, however, they needed to get up. “We have to go into the precinct, sweetheart.” he prods gently, running a hand up and down her back. He feels her head move against his chest. 

“No.” she mutters. He chuckles again, kissing the top of her head. 

“Yes.” he tells her and rolls away. He feels her reaching out to him and grins. He reaches over and gives her a little slap on the ass. “Up, love.” she squeaks, then groans annoyed, pushing her face into the pillow and absently swatting at him. This time he laughs, walking off to the bathroom. 

“Mmm, Gendry.” he hears her whine as he turns the sink on, picking the toothbrush she bought him out of the cupholder next to hers. He brushes his teeth and leans over to spit in the sink. When he stands straight again he’s startled to see Arya standing in the doorway through the mirror. “Geez, make some noise.” he mutters, earning a sleepy grin. He takes a step back after rinsing his toothbrush.

She’s on him before he can fully consider what’s going on, hoping up onto the counter and occupying the space he’s suddenly left. “You shouldn’t stray so far away.” she tells him. 

“Oh yeah, and why’s that?” he asks, leaning into her. His hands come down on either side of her, propping him up against the counter. 

“We have to stick together so you can protect me.” She sounds almost pouty and he knows he should feel terrible about the circumstances, that his mind should be overly occupied by the weight of her words, but he can’t help but tease her. 

“I’m glad to see you’ve found a way to turn this to your advantage.” 

“Well, we were interrupted rather rudely last night.” she replies, fiddling with the long chain around his neck. On the end of the chain is a ring of his mother’s he’d found among her things in Storm’s End. He had told her that he remembered her wearing it nearly everyday, the distinct whorl patterns and blue stones messmerizing him every time he looked at it. 

“I think we should just be happy your cousin didn’t shoot me on the spot.” Gendry tells her. He has plenty of reasons to be mad at Jon, but it doesn’t mean he’s going to let it show. Arya on the other hand has no such compunctions. 

“If he gives you a hard time I’ll deal with it.” she says it so fiercely, it’s absolutely adorable. She’s so small, and yet he has little doubt she can handle her much larger cousin with little to no trouble. It also stirs up feelings he doesn’t want to consider at the moment, knowing that she would go to bat for him, even against someone she’s spent her entire life loving like a brother. 

“I appreciate that.” he tells her. He leans down to kiss her and she leans up to meet him. “And as much as I would love to do exactly what you're thinking, we have to get ready to go into the precinct.” 

Arya looks up at him through her lashes, nibbling on her lip. “I suppose you better hurry then.” 

Gendry huffs, shaking his head. “You’re incorrigible.” he tells her, but he also leans down to lay a trail of kisses along her neck, so she can assume she won him over. He steps back a moment later, turning to the shower and flipping it on. When the temperature is right he turns back to her, stripping off his pajama pants as he stands before her. “Better hurry then.” he says, stepping into the shower. 

xXx

The precinct is bustling with activity when they step through the elevator doors and onto the violent crimes floor. Officers move from one end of the bull pen to other and through it all, she can see into the conference room, where Jon, Davos and Podrick are huddled around the table, in much the same way they had when her life had diverged in Gendry’s direction. She feels Gendry squeeze her hand and she squeezes back, choosing not to look up at him out of fear of losing her nerve. 

She drops his hand as they move closer to the conference room and he opens the door for her, stepping aside for her to walk through first. Davos, Podrick and Jon turn at the sound, but her focus is solely on the stacks of photos she can see beyond them on the table. Tacked to the white board on the opposite side of the table are crime scene photos of the hotel room. Even across the room she can make out the photos of her on the walls. 

“I relieved the patrol outside the house.” Gendry tells them, breaking the tense silence. They turn their attention from Arya to Gendry, the prompt pushing them forward. “What do you know so far.” 

Davos sighs. “Not much more than we had last night I’m afraid.” he tells them. “As I explained last night, dispatch got a call about a potential robbery. Robbery homicide has been on high alert since the bank robbery last year, so they sent Detective Delmar and another officer out to take a look. When they got there they found all of this.” he gestures to the photos on the white board. “While they were looking around, a white male approached the room and immediately ran when he saw Delmar and his partner. He hasn’t spoken a word since he was caught.” 

“Evidence is still running.” Podrick adds. “We got a court order for DNA from the suspect we caught, but it’s going to take awhile to run it through the national database.” 

“What about the photos, how old are they?” gendry asks. 

“We were hoping Arya could tell us. I recognized one from her birthday last year.” Jon explains. They turn to Arya whose been listening absently as she looks through the stack of bagged photos. She’s pinpointed a few obvious ones. 

“This one is from my first day at the clinic.” she tells them, holding out a photo. She was standing with her back to the camera, the angle suggesting it had been taken across the street and she was looking up at the Stag’s Head sign, steeling herself to go in. “And this one is from... “ she hesitates. “From about a week after the Walker case.” This photo was of Arya in her backyard, the angle high, most likely from a tree out on the property line behind her house. She was kneeling on the edge of her garden, looking up at the seemingly empty space on the other side. A third photo jumps out at her, one of her standing outside Ygritte’s pub, she can’t know for sure, but she thinks it might be from a few days after she and Gendry cleaned out the attic. She says as much, watching the dark shadow cross Gendry’s face. 

“That was almost two years ago.” he says with a hint of anger in his voice. The implication was clear, whoever these people were, they had been following her for years. They had been watching her, watching everyone she had come in contact with, invaded her privacy. And the worst part of it, she had no idea why. 

“Can you keep looking through these. Maybe put together a timeline?” Jon asks. She nods slowly, turning to the table and beginning to sort through the stacks again. She continues to listen as they move on, asking Podrick about whatever forensics he’s managed to get so far. 

“Got nothing from John Doe’s fingerprints.” he explains. “But while we’re waiting for DNA I’m running his mug shot through a facial recognition program I wrote, so if he appears anywhere, on social media, in a digitized newspaper clipping, we’ll find him.” 

“Arya?” Davos questions abruptly, they all look at him. “If we show you a picture of the suspect, could you tell us if you recognize him?” he asks. 

“I can try.” she tells him and Jon grabs the casefile sitting on his side of the table. He flips it open, pulling a mug shot from a paperclip between the pages. He slides it across the table to her and immediately drops a finger on it. 

“You recognize him?” Gendry asks. She nods, looking back at him over her shoulder. 

“He came in for a physical.” she said, asked specifically for me, said a coworker recommended me to him because he hates doctors. I remember joking about not taking it personally.” 

“When was this?” Jon asks. 

“About a week before we left for Storm’s End.” a weighted silence falls between them and she turns back to the photos without prompting. The conversation eventually picks up again around her, but it’s nothing more than they’ve already discussed and she tunes it out, letting her thoughts wander as she sorts through the photos. 

Her head feels so full it’s nearly impossible to focus on what she’s doing, and the sinking feeling that she’s been trying to push aside since her home was invaded by armed officers the night before is threatening to overwhelm her now. It’s a horrifying sensation, one she likens to her emotions in the days after Lommy was killed. The idea that she could ever fall back into that scares her and…

“Hey.” Gendry’s voice is soft, his large hand warm on the small of her back. She looks up at him, absently aware that they're alone now. “You alright?” he asks. 

No, no she isn’t alright, but she can’t say that because she can’t find the words to explain what she’s feeling. She has never been able to articulate how she feels, and that hasn’t changed. So, she nods stiffly, a response Gendry doesn’t quite seem to believe. 

“If you need to stop you stop okay?” he finally tells her, moving a little slower. She nods again, this time a little more controlled. “I’m going to go check some things out with Podrick, do you want me to bring anything back for you?” 

“Coffee?” she asks. He nods. 

Gendry lingers for a minute longer before turning and walking out. She watches until he disappears on the other side of the bullpen. 

xXx

Arya hasn’t moved in nearly three minutes. He knows that doesn’t necessarily mean anything, she could just be studying one of the photos, but it worries him nonetheless. They conclude their conversation not long after she IDs the man as a patient at the clinic, and Jon tells them he’s going to call Stannis and see if he’ll bend his rules about cooperating with the police since one of his employees is in danger. He spares Arya a look but refrains from trying to approach her, the look on his face telling Gendry he’s noticed how close he’s standing to her. It brings to mind a shield, and Gendry thinks he’s got no problem being her shield for as long as she’ll have him. 

Davos follows Jon out, stating his desire to look into the other residence of the hotel, which leaves Gendry, Podrick and Arya alone. 

“I have somethings you might want to see upstairs.” Podrick says lowly, his eyes cutting to Arya where she remains immoble. “Better news than I can give you about the current case.” the look in his eyes confirms Gendry’s first thought and he nods. 

“Alright, I’ll meet you upstairs.” he tells him and Podrick heads out himself. When they're alone, he turns his full attention to Arya, watching with a vast amount of concern as she stares blankly down at the stack of photos in front of her. There are plenty of emotions she could be feeling at the moment. The knowledge that for almost two years a group of people have been watching her, invading her privacy, it’s enough to make him angry and it’s certainly enough to disturb even the most stable of people. 

Gendry sighs, stepping into her side, his hand instinctively falling to the small of her back. “Hey.” he speaks softly, pulling her from her thoughts. “You alright?” he asks, knowing perfectly well she’s not, even as she nods stiffly at him. “If you need to stop, you stop, okay?” he tells her, emphasizing the point. There’s nothing he wants more than to make sure she understands that as important as this is, her wellbeing will always come before anything else. She nods again and he tells her he needs to go to talk to Podrick. 

Upstairs, Gendry enters the lab to find Podrick working at his desk. The younger man looks up as he enters and immediately stops what he’s doing to stand. He moves across the room, opening a file cabinet against the far wall and pulling a file out of the back. He moves to Gendry’s side, handing the file over. 

“I know you have a lot going on, but I figured you might want at least some good news.” Podrick explains. Gendry flips open the file and freezes. 

“Is this?” he pauses. 

“The reconstructed receipt in the hit and run case? Yeah. I just managed to finish it before I got called the Harrenhal.” he explains. “It’s not perfect, but it’s the best I could do. I had to start over several times because the paper was so badly damaged.”

“It’s better than I could have hoped.” Gendry tells him, looking up from the file. “Thank you.” 

“Yeah, no problem. Just remember, when they finally give you your own team, you keep me in mind.” Podrick jokes and Gendry chuckles and though it’s half hearted it’s something at least. Gendry closes the file and sticks it under his arm. 

“In the meantime, anything else I should know about?” 

Podrick sighs. “Honestly, nothing is coming up. It’s like all my machines know how important this case is and have decided to take their time working.” 

“What’s that saying, a watched pot never boils?” Gendry asks a little smirk tilting his lips. 

“Yeah, well a watched Maspec better hustle.” Podrick replies. “I’ve got one of my people working on tracing the anonymous call, but it was routed through the switch board so it may be a bit difficult. I’ve got part of the team sorting through fibers and fluids, another doing elimination prints and then I’m trying to pinpoint John Doe’s identity.” 

“Any hits with that?” 

“I’ve gotten a few pings, but I need to research them to verify.” 

“Need help with that?” 

“Couldn’t hurt.” Podrick agrees, leading gendry back to his desk. He picks up a short stack of papers and hands them over. “The problem with some of these is that their digitized newspaper articles and the photos aren’t all that clear.” 

“Well, I’ll let you know if I find anything, you do the same.” 

“I will.” Podrick looks like he wants to say more, but hesitates. 

“What’s wrong?” Gendry asks. 

“I just…” he shakes his head. “It’s not relevant to the case, it can wait.” 

Gendry looks at him suspiciously, then goes out on a limb, replying;

“Say it, Payne, I know you want to.” he rolls his eyes as he does and gleeful Podrick says:

“I told you so. I knew it from the beginning.” he mockingly scoffs. “Just friends, please.” 

“Feel better?” Gendry asks. 

“Much.” 

Gendry sighs. “Everyone is talking about last night aren’t they?” 

“Kinda, yeah. I mean, you did get caught canoodling your partner’s cousin.” 

“We didn’t get caught, it wasn’t a secret.” 

“Then why didn’t you say anything before?” Podrick looks far too pleased for Gendry’s tastes.

“Because it’s no one elses business.” he replies. “We wanted to at least have one official date before everyone decided to stick their noses in.” 

The accusation does little to tamp down Podrick’s amusement, but he doesn’t say anymore. 

Several hours later, Gendry sits back in his seat and yawns, rolling the kinks out of his shoulders. He’s been trying to verify the identity of their John Doe in all the pings Podrick received and so far he’s had no luck. He checks his watch to see it’s well past lunch and turns to spot Arya still in the conference room. There’s a pang of guilt when he realizes he’s been so caught up he hasn’t checked on her in several hours and he gets up, making his way over, determined to alleviate that. 

As he enters the room, he sees her shoulders tense, hands rubbing quickly at her eyes. “Hey.” he says, watching her peek over her shoulder at him. Her eyes are red and there’s a white hot flash of anger at the people who are doing this to her. The desire to find them, to make them pay for what they’re doing increases as he slips into the seat beside her. “You can stop if you need to.” he reiterates. 

“I know.” her voice is so heartbreakingly small. “I just…” she stops, pulling one of the photos closer. Gendry looks over at it, his heart stuttering to a halt for a split second. It’s a dark photo, but you can clearly make out their outlines in the light from his mother’s house. “They followed us to Storm’s End.” she says unnecessarily. 

Gendry throws his arm over the back of her chair and leans closer as he slides the photo toward him. He can see why she’s upset, he’s upset too. These people, whoever they are, aren't just spying on a woman going to and from work, they're following her all over the country. Storm’s End is a nearly five hour drive south introducing a new level of commitment in whatever plan they’re hatching. Additionally, how would they even know they were going to Storm’s End unless of course they were there listening in when he showed up at her house that fateful night. 

To make matters worse, Arya’s inability to drive meant she walked pretty much everywhere, which meant that at any point they could have attempted to take her, or worse, kill her while she was out in public, exposed. The very thought sends a cold chill down his spine. 

The door opening pulls him from his thoughts and he turns to find Jon there. He looks between them, Arya glancing over her shoulder just long enough to get a look at her face. “What did you find?” he asks, a sense of dread in his voice. Gendry hands over the photo. 

“They followed us to Storm’s End.” Gendry explained. Jon takes a second to look at the photo before replying;

“They followed you five or more hours from home?” The tone of his voice sets Gendry on edge, not because it’s Jon as anyone would have suspected, but because there’s a skepticism in his voice that brings up thoughts Gendry hadn’t initially considered. Jon moves around the table to face them. 

“Why do you sound skeptical?” Arya asks, getting right to the point. 

“Well, it doesn’t make sense.” Jon explains. “There are seven types of stalkers. Domestic, perpetuated by a former spouse or lover. Lust, which is usually a serial crime, someone who stalks multiple victims. Love-Scorned, someone who desires an intimate relationship with the victim but was probably rebuffed. Celebrity, which I don’t think needs an explanation. Political, someone who stalks someone for political reasons, either in agreement or disagreement. Murder for hire, which also doesn’t need explanation and then finally Revenge, a former employee, vindictive neighbor or spiteful relative.” Jon explains. “All of those stalker types are usually solo and the only one of the seven who would go to such extremes to follow you is a love-scorned.”

“But there’s three of them.” Arya replies. 

“Exactly, so they don’t even fit that category.” 

“So why would they follow us then?” 

Gendry sighs heavily, the answer coming to him like ice water to the face. “They… may have been planning to take you while you were out of the city, out of the jurisdiction of the people who would stop at nothing to get you back.” 

“But why?” she exclaims. “Why would anyone do this?” 

“That’s what we need to find out.” Gendry tells her as calmly as he can manage. She huffs, collapsing heavily into his side. He wraps his arm around her and sets his chin on the top of her head, eyes screwed shut in an attempt to stave off the tears he can feel threatening to fall. He almost forgets Jon is there until he speaks up again.

“Podrick looks like he's about to tackle someone.” he says, and Gendry startles, turning abruptly to see Podrick sprinting toward them. He burst through the door, waving around a file. 

“We tracked the anonymous call.” he says breathlessly. He tosses the file on the table, nearly doubling over from his run. Jon reaches out for it, as Podrick continues. “It was traced to a private line owned by Witsec.” 

“What’s that?” Arya asks. 

“Witness Protection.” Gendry replies, mind racing. 

“After I got the number, I called the Marshalls and told them what was going on. They looked into it and got back to me.” 

“And?” Jon urges him to continue. “Let me guess, they threw up their veil of secrecy.”

Podrick shakes his head. “The agents' exact words were along the lines of, this is your case, so legally we can confirm a few things, but we can’t do anymore than that on the phone.” 

“Our case?” Gendry asks, but his tone makes it clear he already knows the answer. Dread settles into the pit of his stomach as Podrick continues his narrative.

“The number came from the safe house where they’ve placed Jennifer Hagen.” 

He feels Arya tense against him, and his arm instinctively tightens around her. Jennifer Hagen, as anyone who paid any attention in the precinct knew, was unstable at best. Since her arrest nearly two years earlier she had steadily devolved from self righteous zealot to raving lunatic. Her obsession with her mission had brought about day after day of rambling, to the point where prosecutors only had to walk into the room with a tape recorder and listen. The case was cut and dry until she had a lucid moment and asked for a lawyer. The lawyer turned an already complicated case into an outright mess, by petitioning a judge to have Jennifer committed and all tape recordings thrown out. The judge agreed to have her evaluated before he would make any rulings on the tapes. 

All of this extended the investigation an additional two months, only for the doctors to come back with inconclusive results. Yes, she tended to ramble, yes she had supposedly committed heinous crimes, but that didn’t automatically make her ill. When you're raised to believe something it’s a little harder to break the cycle, especially when you don’t want to. This led to more court hearings, more petitions for second opinions and extended the nightmare that was this case another six months. 

In all this time both Gendry and Jon had made it a point not to speak to Arya about it. They had enough evidence that didn’t need her testimony from that night to convict her, and the DA was looking more and more favorably on a plea deal just to be done with the mess altogether. Gendry was of the mind that the victims deserved better than that, but several of their families had come forward in favor of a plea deal, most of them just wanting the opportunity to mourn their loved ones and move on with their lives. 

Four months ago, however, things got complicated. Through all of this, they had been actively searching for Jonathan Hagen, Jennifer’s older brother and the man who taught her the ways of their family’s cult. One day, Jennifer has what they had deemed a lucid moment- though the clinicals had informed them they weren’t technically what they would call lucid, as they were more like moments her brain caught up to the rest of her- and claimed that there were killing fields all over the country. She could tell them exactly where they were located so that the victims of her family’s “duty”- that’s what she called, still clinging to the delusion that she was in the right- could find peace. 

The DA made a deal with her lawyer, told them where one was so they could verify and if it was proven she was telling the truth they would make a deal. So she did, and she was unfortunately telling the truth. They discovered twenty seven bodies of varying age, race and gender buried in a field in Dorne. The bodies all ranged in the twenty year period between 1962 and 1982. 

The deal was made and Jennifer was put into protective custody after an attempt on her life by one of the inmates at the facility she was being housed in. It was later discovered that one of the victims in the Dorne killings came from a wealthy family and they had promised to finance the family of an inmate serving a life term for murder in exchange for their taking care of Jennifer. At least that was the narrative they all believed. The family had closed ranks and the inmate was talking. 

A second attempt, this time by an inmate looking for street cred, had forced them to take her out of the system entirely, dropping her into Witsec while they worked on retrieving the rest of the killing field locations from her. That had been two months ago. 

“Why would Jennifer Hagen call in the tip, and for that matter, how would she even know about it?” 

Podrick shrugs. “That’s something you're going to have to take up with Witsec. The agent in charge should be calling the Captain soon to set up a meeting.” 

Gendry sighs. “In the meantime, I’m taking Arya to get something to eat. You guys want anything?” he asks. They both shake their heads. 

“Do you need back up?” Jon asks. 

Gendry shakes his head. “We’re just going to walk around the courtyard.” he tells them, getting up. He helps Arya to her feet and she goes willingly enough, following him out. 

xXx

As it turns out, Arya and Jon both know the Agent in charge. One Edric Storm, who, to Gendry and everyone else's initial shock, looks so much like Gendry they have to take a moment to collect themselves before getting down to business. He’s knowledgeable about the case, even going so far as to admit that he took the assignment because of Arya. Arya smiles, but it’s barely even half hearted and the caveman side of Gendry’s brain has to resist the urge to punch his teeth in. Arya would later tell him that Edric’s family and Stark’s ran in the same social circles, so she had seen quite a bit of him growing up. That fact eased his mind a bit, until Jon later warned him that Edric had had a not so subtle crush on Arya growing up and had on a few occasions tried to use their family connection to persuade her to enter into a relationship with him. He wasn’t a jerk about it and he wasn’t classist, but he had been raised by a mother who was so that influence tended to bleed into his life whether he realized it or not. He had had trouble, still sort of did, understanding why a woman of proper breeding like Arya would not want to be with a man of proper breeding like himself.

The caveman side of his brain informed him he was an idiot for not listening to it. 

“I know the doctors have said they aren’t, clinically speaking, lucid moments, but we’ve continued to call them that for lack of a better word.” Edric explained. “She’s had extended periods of lucid moments over the last two months. She’s recalled quite a bit of information since she’s come to us, and I have to say, if it hadn’t been verified I'd find it highly suspicious.” 

“Why do you say that?” Davos asks. 

“Well, it just seems like the timing of these spurts of helpfulness is suspect. Like she’s manipulating the system in some way.” 

“It’s possible.” Jon replies. “She’s been trained to fly under the radar, and there've been passages found in all the old journals describing tactics for remaining outside the prison system where the supposed corrupted are abundant. We accounted for them in initial interrogations.” 

Edric nods in understanding. “Well, whatever she’s working at, she’s being quite helpful.” 

“Is she connected to the outside world at all?” Gendry asks. “Television, print media?” 

“Print media actually. We have no reason not to allow those things. It’s exactly what she would have been allowed while in prison. We’ve also convinced local news across the country to keep the discoveries quiet for now to prevent a panic, so there’s no concern of her seeing something about herself that she doesn’t already know.” 

“So how would she have known about Harrenhal?” Davos asks. 

“Your guess is as good as mine, Captain.” Edric replies. 

“Maybe someone is sending her messages through the papers.” Arya suggests. She turns to Jon. “You remember, that’s how Uncle Edmure met Aunt Rosalin. They answered each other’s classified ads and started communicating back and forth that way.” 

“That makes sense. They could be talking in code, something with key words only she would recognize as something more.” Jon says. 

“We need to get copies of those papers to Podrick.” 

“I’ll see if any of the agents charged with watching her have kept track of the ones she’s read or noticed her doing anything with them.” Edric adds, getting up from his seat, he pulls his cellphone out of his pocket and leaves the room. 

When he’s gone, Davos turns to Gendry. “It’s late, maybe you should get her home.” he nods to Arya. “The unit that’ll be sitting outside the house all night should be there by now.” he explains. 

Gendry looks to Arya who nods in agreement to his silent question and together they get up and head for Gendry’s desk so they can pick up their things. The drive home is mostly silent and it bothers Gendry more than it should. He’s never been bothered by silence, in fact he’s always enjoyed it for the most part, but this isn’t enjoyable, not with the reason behind it. 

“Do you think it’s weird?” Gendry asks abruptly, pulling Arya’s attention from the scenery outside the window. 

“Is what weird?” she asks. 

“How similar Storm and I look?” 

“You don’t look that similar.” she insists. 

“Are you joking, we both had to do a double take. He could be my brother.” 

Arya shrugs. “Maybe you are, he doesn’t know who his father is either.” she laughs. “But I doubt it, you don’t look that much alike. I mean really, he’s like a foot shorter than you.” 

“No, Arry, you’re a foot shorter than me, he’s more like five inches, if that.” 

“You’re like a fucking Wookie, Gen, five inches makes quite a bit of difference.” she replies. 

Gendry grins, glad at the lightening mood. 

They pull into the driveway to find a cruiser there and Gendry leads her toward it, peeking inside. “They must be searching the yards.” he says when they find it empty. For a moment he remembers the first time officers were set to guard Arya’s home and the sinking feeling returns, overwhelming the good feelings slowly. He unholsters his weapon and takes Arya by the hand, walking toward the side yard and backyard beyond. “We’ll get them and check the inside, then lock up tight, alright?” he tells her. 

“Okay.” she replies, following along the side yard. As they turn the corner into the back yard, Gendry stops short, feeling Arya bump into him from behind. She moves to look around him and he feels her tense at the sight. 

“Do you have your key out?” he asks, eyes never leaving the two bodies lying at the far end of the yard. He knows their bodies, they have to be, because there’s no other reason for the two officers to be lying in Arya’s backyard. 

He hears the way her voice shakes, she’s near hyperventilating. “Are they…”

Dead? He certainly hopes not. “I don’t know.” he takes her hand again, tugging her back to the front of the house, mentally cursing himself the whole way. He should have had someone else come with them, Jon or Davos or another of the detectives, but he’d allowed himself to get distracted. 

As they reach the edge of the house, Gendry is knocked off his feet by a humanoid shape, driving him to the ground and the gun from his hand. He scrambles to his feet as he hears Arya scream for him, but he never gets farther than his knees as a sharp pain over takes his face, sending him back down. 

“Gendry!” Arya screams shrily, desperation and panic clear in her voice. It drives him to try again but the next blow catches him on the back and when he lands this time the struggle to get up is only that much harder. Arya continues to scream and he continues to fight though. The forth blow brings the darkness crashing down around him, Arya’s cries fading away.


	4. A Girl Is Arya Stark

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not Beta'd, Sorry.

Faceless

Chapter 4: A Girl Is Arya Stark

xXx

Arya screams. As loud and as much as she can. The man who stands over him as he struggles to regain his feet is masked and pays her no mind. He strikes out again, his foot connecting with the side of Gendry’s head and her senses return, reminding her that she’s trained to defend herself. She rushes forward, but doesn’t get very far as arms like steel bands reach out from behind her and clamp down around her. She’s got enough sense to react, her arms pinned to her sides so she kicks out, trying to knock her capture off balance. 

It works and she scrambles to her feet as she’s let go, ignoring them and running for Gendry. The man has hit Gendry again this time across the back and when he doesn’t get up, she screams again. The man looks up and moves toward her, his intent clear. As he reaches out for her, she brings the palm of her hand up, driving it into his chin, following it quickly by a quick jab in the throat. The man chokes, coughing and doubling over as he holds his throat with one hand. 

In a fit of rage, Arya moves forward to kick him, but before her foot can connect with his head, she’s yanked off her feet, held tight by the same person who tried to take her before. She struggles again whipping her head back to try to catch them in the chin, but they just barely dodge it. 

“Are you alright?” the person behind her calls out. It’s a woman’s voice, and despite the question she doesn’t sound as though she cares all that much. The man collects himself, though he doesn’t seem to be doing all that much better and moves toward them. Arya continues her struggle, she doesn’t think she can take both of them, but she’s certainly not going to make it easy. 

The man reaches for her feet and she clips him in the cheekbone before he can get a hold of them. He jerks back with the impact and then moves forward again, this time weary of her. There’s a sharp pain in her neck, but she pays it no mind, continuing her struggle against them. 

“Hey!” she hears in the distance. She recognizes the voice, but she’s in too much of a panic to place it. “Let her go!” the voice sounds again, this time closer. The man and woman don’t answer, carrying her off toward the front yard. They’re rushing now, she can feel their panic through her own. “I said let her go! Or I’ll blow your fucking heads off!” there’s a moment where they share a silent conversation, even as Arya continues to struggle and then sirens in the distance. 

“We need to go.” the man says, dropping her feet, but Arya doesn’t give him the chance to step back. She kicks out, hitting him just under the chin and sending him to the ground unconscious. 

“Bitch.” the woman curses, dropping her on the ground. “You’re more trouble than your worth.” She’s gone by the time Arya collects herself to look around.

“You alright sweetheart?” the familiar voice asks and she looks up to find her neighbor, Mr. O’leary walking toward her, his hunting rifle in his hands. She nods stupidly and then her mind catches up with her and her attention snaps to Gendry where he’s laid face down on the ground. She struggles to get to her feet, rushing toward him. 

“Gendry?” she calls out, forcing back tears as she sees the bright red stains on his shirt collar. She checks his pulse, still going strong, but he’s not responsive and she’s got enough presence of mind to remember how many times he’s been kicked in the head. If he doesn’t have a severe concussion she’d be surprised. As used to these high stress situations as she is, she’s never in the right state of mind when Gendry is involved and this time he’s not able to calm her long enough for her to collect herself. 

“Arya!” Jon’s voice sounds across the yard and she looks up to find him rushing toward her, Davos, Edric and a near fleet of officers spreading out behind them. 

“Jon! It’s Gendry!” she calls out to him as he nears and for a split second he looks confused. 

“Who?” he asks, dropping down on a knee in front of her. 

“Gendry.” she replies. “They-” she stops, looking down to find the space his body once laid empty. “Where-” she looks up at Jon only to realize he’s trying to say something, but despite his lips moving, there’s no sound. And then it starts, the minute ringing that slowly grows and grows as she stares up at her cousin. “Gendry.” she says again, the ringing growing ever louder. She’s lightheaded now and she struggles to remain upright, swaying on her knees. “Gendry.” she repeats, and like a trigger, the darkness descends around her. 

xXx

When Arya jerks awake she doesn’t know how long she’s been unconscious, the throbbing pain in her head is enough of a distraction at the moment that she puts the idea aside and sits up. Vertigo takes hold for a moment, her head spinning and she rubs at her temples trying to ease the pressure. As she sits there, her mind reaches for the shreds of her last memories and like a horror movie playing against the backs of her eyelids she sees Gendry lying prone on the ground, blood pooling around his head, unmoving. Tears spring to her eyes as panic grips her. Her eyes snap open and she takes in her surroundings. The room is dim, but it’s most certainly a bedroom of some kind. It’s sparse, a bed, end table, door, no windows… and an IV stand. 

Confused, Arya stares up at the tall metal frame, squinting at the label of the empty bags hooked over the top. After a moment her mind catches up with her and she realizes the bags are all hooked together, leading down to a tube and into her arm. How had she missed that? She finds a box of tissues on the nightstand and grabs one, using it to staunch the blood as she pulls the IV free. She then moves to the edge of the bed, pausing there as the room spins a bit. When it settles she gets up, her legs shaking under her weight. She’s not sure they’re going to hold her, but she also knows she needs to get out of here, so she makes herself take a step and then another until she’s standing in front of the IV stand, pulling the bags down to examine them. 

It doesn’t take long for her to realize what they are, or what they mean. There are three all together. Saline for hydration in one and a cocktail of nutrients usually used for patients who can’t eat for one reason or another and in the third is sedative. It’s quite clear to her what this means, but she’s not sure she wants to believe it. She’s been unconscious for an extended period of time, and while that doesn’t necessarily mean it was a long time, it was enough to be disorienting. 

In a sudden burst of rage, she throws the bags across the room, the slap of medical grade plastic against the wall giving her a slight sense of satisfaction but not much more. She huffs, rubbing at her temples again, the pain returning. 

Arya takes a step back from the stand and turns to the door, the most obvious thought crossing her mind. She walks up to it, twisting the knob and, surprisingly enough finding it unlocked. When the door is less than an inch open, she stops, listening for what feels like hours before she opens it a bit more, just enough for her to peek out. The hallway beyond is dark, but there’s a light at the far end, shining out of a partially opened door. Beyond that door is another door and judging by the small window in the center of it, it’s an exit. 

She knows that the odds of the door being unlocked is minimal and she doubts her ability to move beyond the open door without drawing any attention to herself, not while she’s still struggling to get her legs under her, but she has no other plan. 

“Glad to see you’re awake.” the voice sounds to the right of the open door and she jumps back startled, slamming the door shut and back pedaling away from it. Her heart is still racing as the door opens again admitting a man a bit taller than herself. His brown hair is long and wavy, resting just above his shoulders. He’s white but tanned, clearly spending a good amount of time in the sun. It’s his grey eyes that surprise her the most. There’s only three other people she’s ever met with grey eyes like hers and she’s related to all of them. It’s unnerving to see them on someone else. 

“My apologies, I didn’t mean to startle you.” the man tells her, stepping into the room. He doesn’t close the door, but he does remain between her and it. 

“Who are you?” she asks. “Where is Gendry? What do you want with me?” 

The man smiles softly and she thinks he might mean it to be comforting but it’s anything but. “My name, my real name is Jaqen. You may know me, however, as Jonathan Hagen.” 

Arya feels her heart drop and takes an involuntary step back. Terror grips her against her will and her body tense like it’s getting ready to strike out. 

Jaqen seems to notice this, keeping his distance, his hands raised placatingly. “Please, Dr. Stark. I know you have a complicated history with my sister, but I can promise you that no harm will come to you here.” it does absolutely nothing to make her feel better. “To answer your other question, it’s quite simple. I need your help. Help that you are uniquely qualified to offer.” he pauses. “Now, I’m willing and ready to answer any and all questions. It’s important that you understand what’s going on, but right now I think you need to rest.” he takes a step forward and Arya steps back.

“If you come anywhere near me I will fucking kill you.” she snaps with a burst of false bravado. Her fear is bordering on anger now, though she’s doubtful over the sustainability of it. Jaqen stops, raising his hands again and taking a step back. “Where is Gendry? What did you do to him?” she demands.

“Gendry? He’s the man who was with you?” Jaqen questions, though it’s obvious he already knows the answer. “Of course. I don’t know, Dr. Stark. I assume he’s with his people. We didn’t do anything to him?” 

“Bullshit, that guy kicked him in the head!” 

Jaqen, surprisingly enough, looks apologetic as he replies. “I see, I didn’t know that. I apologize. I gave my people explicit instructions not to hurt anyone. I will see to it that they are dealt with.” 

Arya shakes her head in disbelief, but she doesn’t say anything more about it. There’s pressure in her chest everytime the image of Gendry lying on the ground unmoving crosses her mind. She doubts this man is going to tell her anything but what he thinks she wants to hear, so continuing to ask is the equivalent of false hope. 

“Now, Doctor, please, I think it would be best if you sat down; tried to relax.” Jaqen continues. 

“And I think it would be best if you answered my questions right now.” she replies curtly. Jaqen hesitates, looking her over before he sighs. 

“Very well, come with me.” he finally replies, turning and walking out. She hesitates for only a moment before moving after him. She steps into the hallway and finds him waiting for her at the end of the hall in the opposite direction of the light. Her legs are still a bit shaky underneath her, but she won’t let her captor see this, won’t let him think he’s right. 

There’s a closed door at the end of the hall and Jaqen opens it, light flooding the hallway beyond. She squints against it and follows him through, refusing to walk in front of him when he offers. The room is a makeshift kitchen. There’s a table and chairs and galley kitchen in one corner and several shelves along the opposite side filled with canned and dry goods. There’s enough here that tells her that there are either more people than they originally thought, a fact also proved by the second person at her home, or the few people she knows are here are planning on staying for a while. Given the nature of the cult she has the terrifying belief that there are in fact more than four of them. 

“Now,” Jaqen says, pulling her from her thoughts. He takes a seat at the kitchen table and gestures for her to sit across from him. Knowing this would leave her back to the door, she pulls it out from the table, setting it sideways and sits down. The sore ache in the side of her neck reminds her of its presence at the strain, but she ignores it, staring definitely across the table. “I see.” Jaquen mutters. “Let us begin shall we?” he prompts, gesturing for her to ask her questions. 

“What do you want with me?” she asks. 

“Now that’s a complicated answer.” he tells her. “Without getting too deep into indoctrination, I’ll try to explain as simply as I can.” he continues. “You, and people like you are what the Faceless Men refer to as a blessing.” 

“A blessing?” she questions skeptically. 

“Yes, a blessing.” he doesn’t sound angry, but he’s not happy with the interruption or the skepticism in her voice. “A gift sent to the mortal plane by the Faceless God to assist us in our quest to save humanity from the corrupted.”

“And how exactly am I meant to do that?”

He looks pleased by the question. “Simply put, with your abilities, you can see into the veil that the corrupted use to disguise themselves, reveal them to those who would be fooled.” 

Arya shakes her head. “No, I can’t do any of that.” she tells him.

“We know you can. There’s no use denying it Doctor. I know you saw through my sister. That’s how you were able to tell the police all about her.” 

“That’s not how it happened at all.” she insists. 

He smiles placatingly at her. “Then how, might I ask, did you pick her out of a crowd of people?” 

“One of her victims showed her to me.”

The smile drops off his face. “Her victim? How?” 

“I see the dead, earth bound spirits. Her first victim after you abandoned her-”

“I left because she was…” the sudden burst of frustration cuts her off, but Jaqen quickly regains himself, his face shifting from anger to indifference like it hadn’t changed in the first place. “Please continue.” he says as if they’re two old friends having a conversation over tea and biscuits. 

Arya stares at him for a moment, he doesn’t flinch, does waiver, it’s like the outburst never happened. “Her first victim was trapped in that field until we found her body. She started showing me what happened, she showed me Jennifer in the crowd. That’s how we found her.” 

Jaqen hums softly in understanding. “The fact that her victim’s souls remained behind only confirms what I have suspected for some time.” he doesn’t elaborate, and Arya gets the impression that he wants her to ask, but she doesn’t honestly care. She doesn’t care about any of this. She only wants to go home, to make sure Gendry is alright and to get back to her life without these people breathing down her neck everyday. She’s done everything in her power to forget that night, even to the point of refusing to talk about it, including with her therapist, but it would appear out of sight out of mind was sufficient enough to keep them away. 

Jaqen shifts in his seat, looking across the table at her like he’s waiting for her question. Well fuck that. 

“How long have I been here?” she asks instead. 

He hesitates, his jaw working minutely. “Two weeks.” he finally replies and she feels her heart drop. Two weeks missing, two weeks since Gendry was attacked, two weeks he could be lying in a hospital bed alone, or worse. She doesn’t want to think about that, not now. She’ll get out of here and then she’ll worry about everything else. 

As if to confirm that that won’t be as easy as she hoped, voices sound in the hall before three people step through the door. Two men and a woman all of various heights and builds. The woman glares at Arya as she enters, but quickly diverts her attention to Jaqen. 

“We’ve found her.” she says simply, the familiar tone of her voice reminding Arya of the woman who helped take her. 

“Good, we’ll move out this evening, during the shift change.” Jaqen replies. 

“What about her?” one of the men asks, gesturing to Arya. 

“She’ll be coming along. We’ll need her help.”

“I’m not helping you do anything.” Arya tells him matter of fact. She may be pushing her luck, but a part of her wants to see how far she can push Jaqen's congenial attitude. “I’ve already told you I can’t do what you think I can.”

“What is she talking about?” one of the men asks, but Jaqen doesn’t answer. 

“You only think you can’t, but I suspect you just need to open yourself up to your abilities.” 

“Well therein lies the problem, because I closed myself off to my bloodline a long time ago and if anyone could convince me to change my mind, it certainly wouldn’t be  _ you _ .” Arya insists. She watches Jaqen’s jaw work, his mouth a thin hard line. 

“You have the opportunity to help us rid the world of evil.” he finally says. 

“No, if I help you I’d only be responsible for the deaths of innocent people.” 

“We do not kill innocent people. Those so-called victims are demons, hiding behind the faces of the people they infected.” the woman pipes up, moving closer to the table. “Once we dispatch them, the souls of the innocents they stole are free to move on to the next life and find peace with the faceless god.” 

“Except in the case of my sister, who has become corrupted herself. She was so caught up in her duty, that she didn’t even see it for herself, and unfortunately I allowed myself to be blinded by my love for her and refused to see it until it was too late.” Jaqen adds. 

Arya is silent for a moment, staring Jaqen down across the table. Her fists clench against her thighs where they rest; nails digging into her palms. There’s a seething rage in her chest, an anger she’s only felt once before, in those months after Lommy’s death. She turns to face Jaqen head on, continuing to stare him down with an intensity that to anyone not trapped in her gaze, would seem calm. 

“I see.” she speaks softly, her voice controlled. “And you’re implying that because Jennifer was corrupted, the souls of all the people she killed were trapped with their bodies.”

“That’s correct. It’s part of the curse of the corrupted.” Jaqen explains. 

“Then I guess all of you are corrupted as well.” 

There’s a dead silence through the kitchen. The two men who had broken off from the conversation and had begun rummaging through the cabinets stop and turn to them. The woman standing beside the table stares down at her in confusion. 

“What do you mean?” Jaqen questions, and perhaps it’s wishful thinking, but Arya thinks she hears fear in his voice. 

“There were hundreds of souls trapped in that field. People who were murdered long before she was ever born, people that we can link to you, to your father. So tell me, who's the corrupted one?” 

Tense silence reigns as Jaqen watches her, that fear she though she heard in his voice now swimming in his grey eyes. Not surprising, it’s the woman who breaks it. 

“She’s lying.” she says. “You’re lying.” 

Arya doesn’t respond, doesn’t look away and neither does Jaqen. “No,” he says. “She’s not.” slowly he slides back from the table, standing. “Clearly we’ve misstepped somewhere.” he continues. “I need to consult the texts. Take her back to her room.” he says and with that he turns and walks out. 

The woman’s hand is suddenly around her arm, pulling her to her feet and toward the door. Arya struggles a bit, but the woman is much stronger than her and she’s outside her room again before she can get free. The woman pushes her through the door and Arya is rather proud that she manages to keep from stumbling. 

“You can not shake the faith.” the woman growls and before Arya can turn to face her the door slams closed, the distinct click of the lock engaging, ringing through the silent room. 

Arya deflates, collapsing on the bed and dropping her head in her hands. Despite her attempts to remain focused on her ultimate goal of escaping, she finds her mind wandering to their conversation. It was the first time she had ever actually said it outloud, that she had cut herself off from her bloodline and it wasn’t as liberating as one might think. 

Arya had grown up in a large, proud, wealthy family. She had been outcast in some ways, and the perfect Stark in others. She held no desire to be a proper lady in high society as her mother wanted, as her sister was so good at, but her father never wavered in his belief that she was embodiment of a Stark; fierce, loyal and kind hearted. 

But there was always a chink in the armor she wore around herself, the wolf head on the breastplate never shown quite so bright when she was reminded of her bloodline’s abilities. She wasn’t like her grandmother, sturdy and unwavering, staring the spirits in the face and telling them what was what. And she certainly wasn’t her aunt, graceful and compassionate, sharing tears with families and bestowing a sense of peace to the spirits that appeared to her for help. No, Arya was none of those things. She was a mess really. Desperate for a sense of normalcy so that every night when she turned the lights out she wouldn’t feel like she was living in a nightmare. 

She was fifteen when she discovered the old journal in her grandmother’s study. It was hidden away, not displayed with the others in a position of pride. For centuries the Stark Women had kept a record of their lives, or the spirits who passed through them and the things they had learned. Each generation passed it onto the next and kept the line of information going, so Arya was confused when she found the journal shoved into a dusty corner among unrelated texts. 

She opened it of course, she was a child of unerring curiosity, and within it she found the secret to freeing herself from what she had deemed the family curse. To this day she still didn’t know who had written that journal, the names were all blacked out by ink, and the writer never indicated in any other way how she was related to the Starks. But she had the gift, so she had to be one of them. 

The writer explained the misfortune that had befallen her all her life and how she believed it was all a direct result of her abilities. She was desperate for a normal life and that spoke to Arya in a way nothing ever had. The author wrote of her search for a “cure” and when she found it, she recorded it for future generations who were not so keen on the disruption to their lives. 

Arya must have read the journal a dozen times before she set out to perform the procedure on herself. That’s what she had called it, like she was cutting a cancer out of her body or sewing up a wound that wouldn’t heal. This hadn't been quite so invasive however, infact, she was skeptical of how simple it seemed, right up until she came too from the meditation aspect of it to find her family crying over her bed. She had been in a coma for a week, and while she felt bad for worrying her family, that first night was spent without nightmares, without shadows, without anything to keep her awake. Her ancestor had spoken of being able to escape and that is what Arya wanted more than anything. And that’s what she did. She loved it, so she pretended not to see the disappointment in her grandmother’s gaze or the hurt in her aunt's having, essentially turned her back on them. 

The look would haunt her for years, but she would push it aside, right up until she realized that ritual wasn’t as fool proof as she had thought. She didn't have nightmares every night, but when a spirit was strong enough to give her one at all they were more powerful than the ones before. The spirits affected her more now, like they were slamming into the wall she put up around her, making her sick. Other effects made driving impossible, and she had to give it up after her first vision. 

After a while Arya returned to the journal for an answer and she found it, eventually, on a folded piece of paper slipped between the paper and leather of the cover. It simply read;

_ There is no escape. _

xXx

Arya doesn’t know how much time passes before the lock disengages and the door opens revealing Jaqen. He looks haggard now, the careful calm gone. He steps into the room and closes the door behind him. He turns to look at her, and there’s a sadness there that she doesn’t want to think about. She doesn’t want to feel sorry for this man, for this monster. Not after everything he’s done, everything he will do. 

“You were right.” he finally speaks and it’s the last thing she expected. 

“Excuse me?” she questions. 

“You were right, we are corrupted.” he tells her, holding up an old leather bound journal in his hand. She hadn’t noticed it when he walked in, but as he waves it around she realizes it looks almost identical to the ones found in Jennifer’s house. The ones she had seen in the conference room while giving her statement to Jon and Gendry. “My father figured it out,” he explains. “He was going to do something about it the night he was killed. We were all meant to die that night, for the greater good.” he explains. 

Arya isn’t sure what he means at first, but it’s not long before she’s reminded of what Gendry told her after they saved her. Jaqen and his sister were the only remaining survivors of the Faceless Cult after everyone committed suicide around the time his father, the leader of the cult was killed by police in a shoot out. Jaqen, who was later given the name Jonathan, and Jennifer were then put into the system and the entire incident was kept as quiet as possible to avoid blame falling on the officers in the shootout that claimed his father’s life. 

“It was all here in his journal.” Jaqen continues. “The shootout with police, the mass suicide, it was all planned.” he sighs, his body nearly deflating as he sits beside her on the bed. He sets the journal between them and turns to face the wall, staring unseeing at the scarred plaster wall. “I fear speaking it aloud.” he tells her. “The walls have ears. Take it, read for yourself.” 

Hesitantly, Arya reaches for the book, the old leather cover cracking under her fingers. She scoots away from him, facing him as she opens to the first page. The first page only has a name written on it. Johann, she thinks it says, but it’s faded so she can’t say for sure. The preceding page is blank as it the one after that, but as she flips to the fourth and spine evens out, the writing begins. 

_ August 27, 1992 _

_ I start this journal with no intention of finishing it in the physical sense. Consider this an explanation to the world. An apology for the misdeeds done unto her by myself, my followers and those who came before.  _

_ We have been misled. I have been misled. For as long as I could remember my father spoke of the corrupted and the duty of every faceless man to wipe them out and free the world of their evil. It was a duty I relished, and that should have been my first clue that something was amiss. I didn’t wanted to see, because I didn’t want to be wrong and for that I am truly sorry.  _

_ It has come to my attention, from where it does not matter, that we have been guided down a path that led to our own corruption. That the years of service to the faceless god have been a ruse, a trap set by the king of corruption itself. It has masqueraded as our god and fooled us into believing that we were doing right, but the truth is clear to me now.  _

_ I must look deep, find a solution to the madness we have sown.  _

_ September 5, 1992 _

_ Much has happened, my writing will be short. I fear the only solution may be the most drastic. I will continue to search for a way to combat the evil we have helped create.  _

_ September 30, 1992 _

_ With each passing day I find myself slipping deeper and deeper into despair. I have been taught my entire life that the way of the Faceless God is the only truly just way, and now I know I have been deceived and that in the deception done unto me, I too have deceived others. I have done this to these people, my people, my family.  _

_ After much research it has become obvious that there is only one solution, so I will take this time to explain everything, as best I can, so that those who may come after us, those who may find us, can be better prepared than my grandfather was. _

_ My grandfather was a simple man, he believed in right and wrong. He stood up for the little man and expected nothing in return. He fought hard for those who were wrongly accused and stood by those who asked for forgiveness and tried to change their ways. He was a man of the seven, through and through. _

_ One night, while letting the dogs out into the cornfield to run, he saw a bright orb of white light emerge from the field beside his own. He claimed the orb was cold, like the harsh winter nights that plagued the region. It spoke to him, it told him of monsters beyond the realm of men, of beings who could take possession of the human body in order to survive on the mortal plane. It told him that those people were corrupted and the only way to save them was to kill them, to set their souls free so that they may cross over and live with him in his kingdom forever.  _

_ My grandfather was skeptical, but the orb would later show him (he refused to explain how) that it spoke the truth and thus, my grandfather, once a man of the seven, became the first faceless man.  _

_ The orb called itself the faceless god and it taught my grandfather all it could so that he could and when it was finished it charged him with the responsibility of training others to serve him as well. For it was only a faceless man who could save the world from the evils of the corrupted king and it’s minions.  _

_ My family has led and trained faceless men for three generations and it is no I who leads them; leads them to ruin. For there is no faceless god, there is only the corrupted king, masquerading as our god and tricking my grandfather into creating a mortal army that would fill his kingdom. In essence it is we who are corrupted.  _

_ I have searched for a solution to this and have only come to one conclusion. There can be no one left. I know that if I try to tell my followers the truth they will hold all the more tightly to their beliefs, thus falling deeper and deeper into the Corrupted King’s clutches. So I must do what no one else will. On this night, I will end the lives of every man, woman and child here in the commune. I will ensure that no one survives to rebuild. When I am sure they will be put to rest, I will go out into the world and allow a law officer to take my life in a way they will not be able to ignore. They will investigate, and discover my followers and they will all be laid to rest in peace, thus ending the cycle of violence the corrupted king has trapped us in.  _

_ My heart aches with thoughts of my daughter, my little June, and the life she will not know. I can only hope that she and my Jaqen will forgive me for not trusting them to break the cycle themselves. Jaqen is too good, like my grandfather before him, and June idolizes Jaqen, she will do whatever he asks of her.  _

_ I write this in the hopes of warning those who may find it. Do not let others fall the way we have. In the following pages you will find a list of our burial grounds along with locations. Additionally the locations of each of our safehouses where you will undoubtedly find more information on us. Perhaps reading through it you may see what we were blind to. You will also find a complete roster of faceless men, may their families forgive them for tarnishing their names. _

_ May our victims find the peace we do not deserve.  _

_ -Johann Levit _

Question after question bounces around inside Arya’s skull, but the one that breaks free is the question of why he was showing her this. 

“I don’t know how to explain,” he admits. “I believe you were meant for something more. We were following my sister after the news broke. Planning on taking her before the police could find her, but you… I saw you leaving the police station, saw you as she began following you and I have felt an unexplainable pull toward you ever since.” he explains. “I looked into your family and through the ancient history, the mythos if you will, I came to believe that you were a blessing sent to us to help us in our quest. Now I believe we were sent to you by your gods.” 

“Sent to me?” she questions. Why, why would the old gods send a cult after her? Was it not enough that she had their gifts against her will. Was it not enough that she was reminded of them with each spirit that crossed her path day in and day out? 

“We are a warning.” he continues. “A warning of what is out there. You say you closed yourself off from your bloodline, well in that case you may as well have turned your back on your gods. We are a message to you from them. You have been in the dark too long, child of the wolves, and it’s time to come in from the cold.” 

Arya stands, pacing the room. “Fuck that.” she says, but the venom isn’t as potent as she hoped. “I have spent my entire life having to look at death. Isn’t that enough for them?” 

“That is not for me to decide.” Jaqen replies calmly. He stands from the bed. “Keep the book.” he tells her as he approaches. “Keep the book safe, show it to only those whom you trust. I have a feeling it may be as important to someone else as it is to you.” he makes his way to the door, opening it before turning to face her. “Come, we have somewhere to be and then you may go home.” 

Hesitantly, Arya follows him, clutching the book to her chest. His words should have made her happy, but there’s a sudden feeling of dread she can’t quite shake. 

So, as she climbs into the back of the old white work van, sitting against the back of the passenger's seat, she does something she hasn’t done in a long time. She prays.


	5. Child Of The Wolves

Faceless

Chapter 5: Child Of The Wolves  


xXx

Gendry comes to with a jerk, calling out Arya’s name in panic. He thrashes against the blankets tangled around his legs, ignoring the pain in his head until the room begins to spin and he’s forced back down on his back. It takes a moment after he settles to realize someone is standing next to him, calling his name. 

“Gendry.” the voice repeats as a hand comes down on his arm. He flinches, startled, eyes snapping to the side to find Ygritte looking down at him, worried. “Hey, welcome back.” she says, sniffling a bit. 

“Arya, where is Arya?” he asks. 

Ygritte looks pained as she replies; “They took her. When Jon and Edric got there with back up her neighbor was running after them and you… well they weren’t even sure you were breathing at first.” 

He shakes his head in disbelief, but the effect is immediate, his head spins a sharp ache screaming through his temples. “Fuck.” he grunts, hands coming up to clutch at his head. “They came out of nowhere. I never…”

“We know.” Ygritte tells him, her hand gentle against his arm. “We know. No one blames you Gendry, those people are trained for this. And…”

Gendry looks up at her expectantly. “And what?”

“And there were more than expected.”

“What?” 

Ygritte takes a deep steadying breath. “Her neighbor heard her screams and came out with his shotgun. He distracted them long enough for Arya to knock one out, but she promptly passed out after. The neighbor was threatening them, said he'd kill them if they didn’t let her go, but before they could react, more of them appeared, at least five more, with their own weapons.” she explains. “He was forced to let them go and they took off with her through the back yard. He tried to chase them down once Jon and Edric pulled up but they got away.” 

“How long?”

Ygritte looks confused. “I’m sorry?” 

“How long have I been unconscious?” 

She hesitates. “Less than two days.” she tells him. 

Gendry huffs, dropping his head in his hands. He digs his palms into his eyes in frustration before abruptly throwing off the thin sheet.

“Wait, what are you doing?” Ygritte asks, as he throws his feet over the edge of the bed. 

“I need to get to the precinct. I need to find her.” he replies, pulling the IV from his arm and wincing as the tape pulls at the hair on his skin. 

“And you will, but you can’t leave.” she insists, trying to reach out across the bed. Her fingers just brush his shoulders as he stands. “Gendry, the doctor has to release you before you can leave.” 

“Then get him in here so he can do that.” Gendry insists. He needed to leave, he needed to leave now. Even as his head throbbed, the world slightly off balance, he knew he needed to push that all aside. Arya was in danger and staying put while he waited for answers was not an option. 

“Gendry.” Ygritte sounds exasperated. “You can barely stand up straight.” 

“That doesn’t matter right now.” 

“It absolutely matters.” 

“You should listen to her, son.” 

The voice that draws their attention sounds from the doorway, and Gendry looks up to find a tall, older man with short, dark brown hair and striking grey eyes. He’s seen enough pictures of the Stark Patriarch to recognize him. Gendry has always believed Arya takes after the Stark side of the family, seeing Ned Stark in person only drives home the idea. 

“I know you’re worried about Arya, but you're no good to her if you make your injuries worse.” Ned tells him. Gendry opens his mouth to argue, but Ned doesn’t let him speak. “I called the doctor when I heard you out in the hall. He’s on his way now. We’ll see what he says and go from there.”

Arya had once described her father as the perfect mediator. The way he could calm anyone was a skill he used regularly on his large family. He could convince anyone to do anything just by speaking calmly and being reasonable. It was a particular skill his youngest daughter hadn’t inherited which is one of the reasons she'd admitted to him that she had gone to medical school instead of taking over the family business when both Robb and Sansa decided to go their own ways. 

Gendry sits down on the bed but refuses to lay down again, a fact that seems to amuse Ned. The silence that follows might be awkward if it weren’t for the tension and all in all, Gendry thinks this might not be the worst way to meet Arya’s family. He’s so focused on finding her he doesn’t particularly care that her father is there. Although, the more he thinks about it the more he realizes that her father is in fact there and not at the precinct or even Arya’s house. He decides to ask him about it, but before he can the doctor steps in. 

The doctor is a tall man with grey hair and brown eyes. He smiles kindly as he enters, stopping just short of the bed. “I can imagine you're ready to go.” he says. 

“Preferably as soon as possible.” Gendry replies. 

The doctor nods. “The fact of the matter is, you had a pretty severe brain trauma. The concussion you suffered is dangerously severe. If I discharge you now, I’d be negligent.” he explains. Gendry feels his heart sink. “However, given everything that’s happened, if you're willing to sign a culpability release form, I will discharge you, but only if you follow strict instructions.” he insists. “I will not approve you for full duty, but I will,” he pauses to sigh, a sure sign he doesn’t want to do any of this. “Approve you for desk duty. Someone needs to keep an eye on you and you need to pay attention to how you feel.” the doctor then lists symptoms he should look out for and what they mean. He’s forcefully insistent about every direction he gives him and Gendry agrees to each one, growing more and more anxious the longer it takes. 

Eventually the doctor finishes, leaving to get the paperwork sorted and in the meantime, Gendry slips into the bathroom to change. When he comes back out, he sits to put his shoes on, ignoring the other people in the room until Ygritte speaks up. “Davos has your side arm.” she tells him and tries not to react, to give away the fact that he didn’t actually think about that at all. It’s undoubtedly a sign that he shouldn’t be going anywhere, but they didn’t call him “The Bull” growing up for nothing. 

“I figured as much.” Gendry replies as he finishes lacing his shoes. The look Ned gives him says he doesn’t believe that for a moment. He ignores it as he intends to do with anything that doesn’t involve him getting out of there and finding Arya. 

The car ride is awful. He spends the time teetering between staving off dizziness and nausea and telling himself, ineffectively, that he doesn’t care that his girlfriend’s father is in the driver’s seat. Ned doesn’t say anything except to Ygritte as they drop her off at her own house where several cars line the driveway. He can see people in the windows, more people than there should be, but he doesn’t get to see who it is because as soon as she’s safe in the house Ned pulls away from the curb and begins the drive to the precinct. 

“So,” Ned finally speaks up about half way there. “Not exactly how I thought I’d meet my daughter’s significant other.” 

Gendry huffs. “If it makes you feel any better, this isn’t how I imagined meeting her father.” 

“Well, here we are.” he replies. “I suppose telling you that Arya speaks very highly of you doesn’t really mean much at the moment, but based on everything she’s told me about you, I know you did everything you could for her.”

“It wasn’t enough though.” Gendry replies staring out at the road ahead of them. 

Ned doesn’t respond to that, making the rest of the trip in silence. He pulls into the precinct lot and together they walk in, finding the bullpen a buzz of activity. It’s Davos that spots them first, the older man looking none too happy to see Gendry. 

“Glad to see you’re awake, lad, but what the hell are you doing here?” he asks as he meets them halfway.

“Where the hell else should I be?” Gendry snaps. 

“The hospital.” Davos sighs, as though already admitting defeat. “But I suppose what’s done is done. Just tell me you didn’t leave without telling anyone.” he looks at Ned. 

“The doctor released him. But he’s to follow strict instructions and not to be out in the field.” Ned explains. 

Davos nods. “Fair enough I suppose. But you will take care of yourself while you're here. When we get Arya back, I don’t want to have to tell her you worked yourself to death. She’ll have been through enough.” 

Gendry agrees then; “What do we know so far?” By this time, Ned had walked off to find his wife, leaving them there to talk. 

“Well, we can confirm the people who took her were Faceless Men. The man she knocked out wasn’t nearly as tight lipped as the one we caught at Harrenhal. When he woke up he refused to answer questions, but we didn’t really need to ask him anything, he ranted and raved and gave away quite a bit in the process.” Davos explains, leading Gendry to the conference room. The group gathered there looks up as they enter. 

“Hey, shouldn’t you be in the hospital still.” Podrick asks. 

“They let me out on good behavior.” Gendry replies. 

“Somehow I doubt that.” 

“And you would be correct, the fact of the matter is, they discharged him under strict guidelines, so let’s get him up to date, shall we.” Davos tells them. They agree silently, turning back to the table where files and stacks of papers are spread out. 

“So here’s what we know so far.” Jon begins. “The Faceless Men, unlike Jennifer, believe Arya to be some kind of blessing that can help them with their mission to eradicate evil. It’s more complicated than that apparently, but this guy wasn’t particularly forth coming with the details. The guy we caught at Harrenhal still hasn’t spoken a word, not even to his cellmate and we haven’t been able to identify either of them.”

“It’s like they’ve managed to completely erase themselves from any public record.” 

“Or they were never in one to begin with.” Edric speaks up. “I mean, if these two were born into the cult, there’s probably not going to be a record of them to begin with.” 

“Makes sense.” Podrick mutters. 

“What about the neighbor, Ygritte said he chased them down.” Gendry asks. 

“He said he chased them through the growth divider onto the street behind them where they got into a white and blue panel van. He managed to get the letter plate, but it looks like a fake.” Podrick explains. “The two that got away were male and female, white, dark hair, but that’s as much as he could see. He didn’t see where the other’s went, they scattered as soon as we got there. He’s also fairly certain he saw them inject her with something, which is probably why she passed out.” 

“What about tracking the van via CCTV?” 

“We tracked them until they made it to the I-80, but we lost them after that.”

“How?” Gendry asks, confused. “80 is a toll road, they would have been scanned getting off of it at some point. Even if they continued on to the interstate afterward.” 

“We’re not sure.” Edrick replies. “You’re right of course, but somehow they got through without being scanned.” 

“Did they though?” Gendry asks. They all look at him confused. “I-80 is the main toll road through this area so it has a lot of service roads. Theoretically, could they not turn off the turnpike onto one of those?”

There’s a moment of hesitation as they stop to absorb what he’s suggested. Then, all at once they jump to action. “Do we have a service map of that area?” Jon asks. 

“I do in my office.” Podrick replies, turning and sprinting from the room. They all work to clear a space at the table while he’s gone and when he returns they spread the map in the open space and begin plotting their route from the on ramp. “There, these are the only three service roads they would be able to access between the on ramp and the next toll booth.” Podrick explains, pointing out three roads branching off the turnpike. 

“This one, 80-1a leads to a power substation for the turnpike grid. This one, 80-2a leads to an empty field and 80-3a leads to a maintenance area for road crew vehicles.” Davos reads off the information as they plot it. 

“There were no reports of stolen vehicles from the service garage, so they couldn’t have switched vehicles to exit undetected.” Jon adds. 

“No, but they could have had a car waiting in the field for them, switched into that and got back on.” Podrick suggests. 

“Or,” Gendry speaks up, studying the map. He traces his finger through the field to a local county highway a few miles away. “They just drove through the field to the next road over.” 

“Could they do that without a road?” 

“This is farm country out here.” Gendry gestures to the open fields on the map. “I’d bet money on that field being used by local kids to ride ATVs and dirt bikes. With enough use those dirt trails would be plenty big enough for a utility van.” 

“What about fencing?” Podrick asks. 

“What about it? Fencing around fields in areas like these are more than likely just wire and wood. With no one the wiser they could take their time, cut through the wire in seconds and pull it aside to drive through. And as for ditches, the kids using the field would more than likely have built up dirt bridges to accommodate the larger ATVs.” 

“Alright, Jon, Edric, go out there and check it out. Stop at any houses or businesses in sight of the field and see if they saw anything. Podrick, pull up satellite maps of the area, maybe they didn’t go far.” Davos instructs, sending everyone on their way. When the room is empty he turns to Gendry. “It’s good to have you back, Gendry. We’ve got hours of interview footage from Witsec. I want you to go through it. You know the most about Arya’s abilities next to Jon, see if you can’t decipher what they plan to do with her beyond the few details our detainee has given up.” 

xXx

Catelyn Stark is an exceptionally beautiful woman. With long red hair and bright blue eyes. She’s aged well despite the number of children who have undoubtedly picked and prodded at her sanity, as only the children of a loving mother can, throughout the years. She moves with grace and poise even in these circumstances, slipping into the chair beside his desk and setting a paper coffee cup at his elbow. He looks down at it for a moment before she says;

“Caffeine free. I suppose that means there’s no point in drinking it then, but I’d like to think it’s the thought that counts.” she tells him. Gendry smiles slightly despite himself. 

“Thank you.” he takes a sip before setting it out of the way of his computer. 

“Of course, you can’t drink that swill in the break room.” she replies. 

This time Gendry huffs. “Yeah, we’re not really sure who makes that. It just sort of appears every morning.” 

Catelyn chuckles and the sound is followed by silence as Gendry turns back to his work. “How are you feeling?” she eventually asks. 

“I’ve been better.” he replies simply. 

“I’m sure.” she mutters. “I suppose there’s no point in me telling you not to blame yourself.”

“Your husband has already tried, but I appreciate the sentiment regardless.” 

Catelyn hums. “I can certainly see why my daughter is so taken with you.” she tells him, catching him off guard. “She talked about you quite often whenever we were able to speak. I don’t think she realized she was doing it, but that’s what happens when you fall in love.” Catelyn tells him. “Lord knows I talked my sister’s ear off about Ned when we first met.” Gendry feels his heart drop, a rush of blood in his ears. He’s known for awhile now how he’s felt about Arya, but to hear that she may feel the same is exhilarating. “Whatever happens, I think you need to know that.” she continues. “That she does care a great deal for you and she wouldn’t want you to blame yourself for any of this.” 

Gendry sighs. “Thank you.” he speaks softly. They sit for a moment before Gendry continues. “Can I ask you something?” 

“Of course.” 

“Arya once told me about a ritual she performed as a child. Something to...cure her?”

Catelyn looks tense for a moment before she lets it go, sitting back in the chair. “Growing up she hated her abilities. Called them a curse, while her aunt and grandmother saw them as gifts. She wanted to be normal and I’m afraid I couldn’t blame her. In the north the Stark name is well known in business and politics. There’s very few true northerners who don’t know the legends surrounding our family, so it was only a matter of time before her classmates found out. Children can be quite cruel. We tried to step in but a reprimand from a teacher or parent can only do so much I’m afraid and even if it had stopped completely the damage was already done. 

She wanted nothing to do with that part of the family legacy. She never kept journals, never read or studied the ones her ancestors wrote. And then one day, for reasons she’s never explained, she went into the study and started looking through the journals. Unfortunately she gravitated toward the one written by her ancestor, who like Arya, wanted nothing to do with her abilities. She claimed to have a “cure” for them, a way to stop it altogether. She didn’t tell anyone what she was doing and when she didn’t answer her door we eventually had to break it down.” Catelyn looks pained. “She was unconscious for a week after that and when she woke up she claimed she couldn’t see spirits anymore.” 

“But she can see them now.”

Catelyn nods. “According to her grandmother, who died a few months after the incident, they have no idea where their ancestor found the ritual, but if someone gave it to her it was clearly a malicious act.” 

“What do you mean?”

“The ritual didn’t “Cure” her of her abilities, it only cut her off from her bloodline.” 

“Arya said something similar, but she couldn’t really explain it.” 

“Well, basically, the abilities of the Stark family were given to the original Stark women as a gift from the Old Gods as reward for their pledge to serve them in the coming wars.” 

“Wars?” 

“We’re not sure exactly, there was a lot of conflict back then, specifically between the Old Gods and the growing movement in devotion to the Seven. We believe it was a service to keep the faith strong in the North.” Catelyn explains. “The gift is passed through the Stark bloodline through the women; grandmother to granddaughter, mother to daughter. The ritual seems to have severed, or partially severed her connection to the ancient blood ties that fuel the line of succession.” she pauses. “I know it all sounds like some high fantasy novel, but you’ve seen what she can do and honestly, it’s nothing compared to what her Aunt can do or her grandmother before her.” she sighs. “All of these issues Arya has, the way the spirits affect her so extremely, the intense visions that make it too dangerous for her to drive, it’s all because of the ritual.” 

“She did that to herself?” Gendry asks. 

“Not intentionally, but yes, she did.” Catelyn replies. “If I may, why do you ask all of this now?” 

Gendry sighs. “Did they tell you anything about who took Arya?” 

“The Faceless men? Yes, they said they need her for their mission or something along those lines. We’ve already spoken to Lyanna, she’s digging into the family journals, but so far there’s no mention of these people or their god.” 

“Jennifer Hagen called Arya a witch and claimed she needed to be sacrificed in order to gain power against the corrupted, but now these people are saying she’s a blessing and they need her to complete their mission. Someone is either lying or there’s a serious miscommunication about their own beliefs.” 

Before Catelyn can reply, Davos appears at his desk. “You were right, they drove right through that field and into the neighboring county.” he tells him. “Jon and Edric are tracking down CCTV from the village and I’ve sent uniformed officers out there to start knocking on doors.” 

“Good, what about the suspect Arya knocked out?” 

“What about him?” 

“Where is he?”

“Down in holding. Did you have an idea about him?” 

“Maybe, I need to talk to him though.” 

Davos hesitates for a moment, eyes darting to Catelyn behind him before moving back to Gendry. “Sure, I’ll have him brought up to interrogation.” 

xXx

The man was meeting with a lawyer when Davos sent for him, so they were forced to wait until the next day to speak with him. In the meantime, Ned showed up to remind him that he was supposed to be taking it easy and his obsessive staring at a computer screen wasn’t good for his healing concussion. So, despite Gendry’s protests, Ned and Catelyn forced him to leave the precinct, driving Gendry back to Arya’s house. He tried not to think about her parents being aware of the fact that he spent more time at her house than his own flat and what exactly they were probably doing on their nights together, but his head hurt just enough that he quickly found something else to focus on. 

“I’m going to make dinner.” Catelyn announces as they walk through the front door. Gendry opens his mouth to argue but she never turns around to look at them as she walks toward the kitchen. 

“Best not to argue. Trust me.” Ned tells him. 

Gendry grunts in understanding. “I’m going to grab a shower then.” he says, heading up the steps to the master bedroom. He runs the shower until it warms before stepping under the spray, letting the water wash over him. The relief is minute, the silence giving him time to finally think about everything. The memories replay through his mind, the sound of her screams echoing through his skull. He feels bile rise up his throat as he thinks about the terror and pain in her screams. 

Gendry jumps out of the shower, bowing low over the toilet, dry heaving. He feels shaky and weak, the water drying on his skin, chilling him as his body tries to eject the contents of his empty stomach. 

“Fuck.” he curses, his body finally stopping. He collapses on the floor beside the toilet breathing heavy, his head spinning. It's not until the sob rips from his throat that he realizes he’s crying. Breath stealing sobs wracked his body as he doubles over, the shower doing nothing to drown out her screams in his head. Until now he hadn’t given himself time to think about anything, his only goal, doing what he could to help find Arya, but here, alone in the shower they shared only a few days before, he can’t keep the thoughts at bay. The what ifs and the memories. He should have been better, should have called ahead, shouldn’t have let himself get distracted. He was so desperate to get her home, get her some place he was certain he could protect her and it turns out he couldn’t protect her. They had been there waiting and he let them get away with his carelessness. 

By the time Gendry gets back in the shower it's cold, but he welcomes the biting chill, desperate to find something to occupy his thoughts. He finishes his shower and steps out, drying and dressing before making his way back downstairs. The first floor smells amazing and he finds his stomach rumbling as he nears the kitchen. 

“There you are, I was just about to send Ned up to check on you.” Catelyn tells him when she spots him in the doorway. “I made linguini and roast chicken, Arya said it was your favorite.” 

“She did?” he finds himself asking before he can think better of it. 

Catelyn smiles sweetly at him. “Of course, she called me for my recipe last year, said she was making it for your birthday.” Gendry takes a seat at the breakfast bar beside Ned. “How did it turn out?”

“Best I’ve ever had.” he tells her. 

She chuckles. “A Tully family recipe never fails.” she says, putting the finishing touches on dinner. They eat in silence and when they’re finished, Gendry finds himself rooted to his spot. Arya had once told him that growing up in her family had been a mixture of feeling like an outcast and living in a cocoon of absolute love. Her parents adored their children, and they’re every action proved that much. Sitting here with them now, Gendry feels that love and he finally understands how Arya could grow up hating so much of herself and yet not being bitter or angry at the world. It seems so obvious, meeting the two people who raised her with unconditional love, why she would dedicate so much of her life to helping other people. 

“We’re going to find her.” Ned speaks up, breaking the silence. Gendry wants to believe that, wants to feel as sure as Ned sounds, but he can still hear the echo of her screams in his head and it threatens to overwhelm him. 

“You sound so sure.” he finally says in an attempt to drown out the noise. 

“In the north, the winters are harsh and unpredictable. You have no control over it. So all you can have is faith. And I have faith, in Arya and in you.” 

“You barely know me.” he says, doing a fairly decent job of keeping the skepticism out of his voice. 

“I think I know you better than you might realize.” Ned replies. “But most importantly, I know my daughter, and I know she wouldn’t have given you the time of day if she didn’t have faith in you.” 

xXx

The days pass, and with each one, Gendry finds his faith tested. The man’s lawyer won’t let them talk to him and any attempt to talk to Jennifer is also being blocked by some political red tape inside the Marshals Service. By the end of the week frustrations are mounting. So much so that it takes both Ned and Davos to pull Gendry away from work long enough to check in with the doctor. It’s good news, he’s doing better and his modified duty should be over in another week. As far as Gendry is concerned it’s not soon enough. 

Arya’s family congregates at Jon and Ygritte’s home, but each night, Gendry returns to Arya’s with her parents. Were his mind not clouded by painful what ifs, he might appreciate the opportunity to know them better without Arya acting as a buffer between them. But, each night, Gendry goes to bed in their bed and tosses and turns as he feels the weight of the empty space beside him, knowing that each day may not bring the revelation he’s praying for. 

Until it does. 

xXx

The man stares forward at the two way mirror, blinking slowly, gaze steady. He’s white, with ashy blonde hair and brown eyes. He looks like he hasn’t slept in a few days, which is possible, though no one has been paying him enough attention down in holding to know for sure. Gendry watches him through the window, waiting. 

It’s been nearly two weeks since Gendry woke in the hospital. He’s back on full duty and until this morning, when he walked in to find out the man fired his lawyer, he had felt as though he had been spinning his wheels in the mud the entire time. 

The canvas through the area around the field brought up little to nothing and the CCTV in the little village spotted the work van heading North, but they needed upgraded and there was little they could do with the footage that stopped at the county line. 

Finding out he could now talk to the man was about the only thing keeping him from banging his head against the wall, and to be quite honest, there was no guarantee his hunch would pan out. 

At some point the door behind him opens, Davos leading Ned in. “Davos says you have a plan.” Ned says as he comes to stand on one side of Gendry, looking through the window at the man beyond. 

Gendry sighs. “I certainly hope so.” he replies. Ned turns to look at him. Gendry waits a moment then turns to look back. “Something is wrong with their indoctrination.” 

“You need to question him to figure that out? They’re serial killers.” 

Gendry shakes his head. “I mean, we have two sides from the same religion and neither side seems to agree on what’s going on. Jennifer Hagen on one side, this guy and the people he’s with on the other.” 

“Alright, and?” 

“The problem is, Jennifer grew up in the cult. Her father was the leader. There’s no reason for her not to understand the faceless religion, so why does she think Arya is a witch but these guys think she’s a blessing?” 

“You think one of them is lying?” Ned asks. 

“I think whoever is lying has an ulterior motive.” 

“What makes you think this?” Davos asks. 

“Something Catelyn said about the Old Gods and the Stark Bloodline.” Gendry explains. Realization seems to dawn on Ned. 

“You want me to listen to what he says and see if anything sounds familiar.” Gendry nods. “Alright, I’m ready when you are.” Gendry nods again, and turns for the door, leaving Davos and Ned at the window. 

He stops outside the door to the interrogation room and takes a deep breath before stepping in. The man glances over at him with the clear intention of overlooking him, only to appear startled by him. The man watches Gendry closely as he takes a seat across from him. 

Gendry sighs. “There seems to be some confusion in your ranks, and I’m hoping you can clarify a few things for me.” the man doesn’t say anything, looking at Gendry with suspicion. “Jennifer Hagen seems to think that Arya, the woman your people took, is a witch. Someone evil.” the man narrows his eyes, sitting back away from the table. “But you claim that she’s something else, something good.” Gendry pauses, staring across the table, never breaking eye contact. “So who's telling the truth?” 

The man sighs. “You can not trust anything she says.” 

“Her father was the leader of the Faceless Men, wouldn’t she know best?” 

The man shakes his head. “At one time, yes, she may have, but now-” he shakes his head no, holding up his hands in a gesture of dismissal. 

“And why is that?” Gendry asks. 

The man stares across the table, eyes darting around Gendry’s face like he’s trying to find something. “She’s corrupted.” 

“I see. And how do you know she’s corrupted?” 

The man shrugs. “We just do.” 

Gendry shakes his head, huffing ruefully. “Forgive me if I sound skeptical, but am I just to believe that you can sense when someone is corrupted.” 

“You believe she can see the dead, why is it so hard to believe we can sense evil?” 

“Arya’s abilities are a right of her bloodline. It’s something she was born with, going back centuries. Her family earned their ability through devotion in conflict. What did any of you do to earn the ability to see evil?” 

“We are just as, if not more devoted than any ancient bloodline.” the man said, shifting in his seat in agitation. 

“Are you?” 

“Yes!” he snaps. 

“Then how was Jennifer so easily corrupted?” Gendry asks. “Her family started the Faceless Men in honor of the Faceless God, correct? There’s vague mention of it in the journals we found in her house. So how then, does she so easily fall to the evil her family swore to fight?” 

The man doesn’t seem to have an answer except to glare darkly at Gendry. Eventually he does speak; “We do more for the world than any other champion of the gods. Where others merely pray to keep the Corrupted King at bay, we take up arms and fight his evil. We are the Faceless Gods arm, his sword and we will rid the world of the evil the Corrupted King has rained down on us since the great schism.” 

A knock at the window draws their attention and without sparing the man a second glance, Gendry stands, walking out. When he walks into the adjoining room, he finds Ned looking antsy, Davos standing beside the window looking confused. 

“What’s wrong?” Gendry asks. 

“There is no Faceless God.” Ned explains. 

“What do you mean?” Davos asks. 

“Church doctrine states that The Corrupted King is one of the Old Gods, right up until the Great Schism. Without going too deeply into the doctrine itself, simply put the Great Schism was the casting out of The Corrupted King by the other gods. He wanted to grow his power, build a new world with himself on top, but the other Gods saw through his plan and cast him out into purgatory. If you believe the doctrine, he found a way to continue his plan, granted at a much slower pace, though no one seems to know for sure how. The clergy claim it’s merely an influence he exerts over humans, but my mother once confided in me that she believed it to be bigger than that.”

“How does that lead you to believe there’s no faceless god?” Gendry asks. 

Ned sighs. “I don’t know for sure, but my instinct tells me that anyone claiming to do bad things in the name of  _ stopping  _ the Corrupted King, is more than likely doing his bidding, knowingly or not.”

“I don’t mean to be dismissive of all of this, but how does this help find Arya?” Davos asks. 

Gendry sighs. “We need to talk to Jennifer Hagen. Someone is pulling strings here and I have a feeling it might be her.” 

“Pulling strings? You think she’s orchestrated this entire thing? From prison?” Ned asks. 

“I know it sounds crazy, but something about all of this just doesn’t add up. Why does Jennifer claim she’s evil, while the others claim she’s a blessing? Why did they stalk her for years before making a move? And how did they even find out about her in the first place?” 

Davos takes a deep breath. “Considering we’re talking about Gods and Ghosts, I’d say that sounds pretty reasonable. I’ll call Edric and try to get clearance to go to the safe house again, in the meantime, Podrick thinks he has more on those satellite images his contact cleaned up for him. Give him a hand.” 

xXx

“This all feels like a modern fantasy novel.” Podrick says, looking up from the satellite photos spread out on the table. 

Gendry huffs. “Never thought this would be my life.” he mutters. 

“Yeah, but you wouldn’t change any of it, would you?” 

“I mean, searching for Arya after she’s been kidnapped by a cult, absolutely, but… not any of the other stuff. No.” and that was the truth. Despite all the weird, unexplainable things, he wouldn’t change any of it, not if it meant never having met Arya Stark. Gendry so desperately wants to tell her that. He wants her to know that no matter how bad things get, how weird, he will be there through all of it. 

“Hey, what do you make of this?” Podrick says, drawing Gendry’s attention across the table. Gendry moves around, coming to stand by his side. He looks down at the eight by ten photo and the long structure nearly hidden by overgrowth. Based on the satellite overlays Podrick managed to convince a friend in some lab in Dorne to help with, the structure was giving off energy, strange considering that according to their maps and a quick search when they initially mapped the area, the structure was abandoned. 

The structure itself was a long barn that had, over the years, been converted time and time again until finally, the last owners turned it into storage. Now it was empty, or at least it was supposed to be. 

“This thing is supposed to be abandoned.” Gendry says out loud. “Is it normal for it to give off this much energy?”

“No, if it were doing it automatically it would be considerably lower.” Podrick explains, turning to check something on his laptop. “This output suggests generators.” 

“That’s them.” Gendry says softly, eyes focused on the arial outline of the building. “It has to be. What are the odds someone else would be squatting in an abandoned building in our search area?” 

“Slim.” Podrick replies, watching as Gendry grabs his jacket off the back of the chair. He slips it on before grabbing the photo and then ducking out of Podrick’s office. 

As he descends the stairs into the bullpen he finds Davos and Edric leaning over Jon’s desk. They look up as they hear him approach. “What’s wrong?” Davos asks. 

“Podrick’s found an anomaly on the satellite images.” he replies, holding out the photo for them to see. “This building is abandoned, but it’s giving off energy as if someone is running generators.”

“Where is this?” Jon asks, standing from his seat. 

“Six miles from the field. Set back in a forested area.” Gendry explains. 

“Go, check it out.” Davos tells them. “I’ll call back up, do not enter until they get there.” he then turns to Edric. “Get a move on on that clearance. I don’t care what you have to tell your supervisors. We need to speak to Jennifer Hagen immediately.”

Edric nods, turning for the desk he’s been using. 

xXx

“We didn’t even see this out here the first time.” Jon mutters, pulling the unmarked car up a long dirt road and into a tree line set away from the main road. He squints against the dark, his headlights shining against the trees. 

“Easy to see why.” Gendry replies as they pass through the tree line, stopping short of an old wooden gate. Beyond the gate the road continues up to the converted barn. They get out of the car, stopping at the gate and peering over. “Fresh tire tracks.” Gendry continues, pointing at the deep lines in the dirt with his flashlight. 

“Did you hear that?” Jon asks, staring up at the barn. 

“Hear what?” Gendry asks. 

“Sounded like someone calling for help.” 

Gendry looks back at Jon, an understanding passing silently between them. “Could be the wind.” 

“Could be, or it could be Arya.” 

“Better not chance it.” Gendry agrees and together they unlatch the gate, pushing it out of the way before getting back in the car and driving the rest of the way up. 

As they get out, drawing their weapons as they approach the barn, Gendry feels the same intense feeling of adrenaline shoot through him as it did the night they approached Arya’s house all those years ago. He was as unsure what they were going to find then as he is now and his only real hope is that she’s as unharmed now as she was then. 

At the end of the barn is a simple split door and they carefully check it for traps with the beams of their flashlights before trying the handle. It’s unlocked and they push it open easy enough. To the left of the door is another door leading into a gathering room of some kind. The sofas and chairs that line the walls are old and mismatched like someone just went out and bought the first things they came across at a thrift store. They check the room thoroughly before moving on to the next one. 

The next room is a bedroom and sits a fair ways down the hall from the door. It’s dark, the only light from an old gas lamp on the bedside table. “Check this out.” Gendry says, crouching down in the corner to pick something up. Jon peers over his shoulder to see the medical grade plastic IV bags. “Saline.” Gendry reads one. 

“What’s the other one?” Jon asks. 

“I don’t know. Some kind of nutrient pack and there’s one with a drug name on it, I’m not even going to try to pronounce that.” he tells him. 

“This could be where they kept her.” Jon says. 

“Meaning they kept her drugged.” Gendry adds, looking up at Jon. Jon looks back, glaring at the bags in his hand. 

“Let’s keep going.” he says, turning toward the door. They move on down the hall to a third room, this one a kitchen. “Seems like they planned on staying awhile.” Jon continues as they look over the shelves. 

“Seems like it.” Gendry replies. “Or there are more of them than we thought.” 

“The real question is, where are they?” 

Gendry moves along the shelves, looking for anything out of place. The risers are mostly stalked with non perishable foods, but there’s a slight stench of decay that tells him they more than likely hunted for the rest of their food. He doesn’t think they would have gone out to buy it each time they needed to eat and from the looks of things they didn’t have a refrigeration system. 

As he passes a shelf near the end, the floorboard beneath him creaks loudly and he stops, shifting his weight to make it do it again. When he looks up he finds Jon staring at him. Gendry gestures to the board before stepping off and going down on one knee. He can’t get his fingers around the edges, so he pulls out his pocket knife, jamming it in and using it to leverage the board up. “Light.” he says, and Jon’s flashlight shines over his shoulder into the dark space beyond. 

“What is it?” 

“Just a cubby hole.” Gendry replies, reaching in. His fingers brush something soft and he wraps them around it, pulling it out. 

“A journal?” 

“I’m getting kind of sick of these things.” Gendry replies, getting to his feet. Jon grunts in agreement. The journal is relatively new considering the age of all the ones they found at Jennifer’s home. Gendry flips to the last page and finds it blank, then flips back through until he finds the only writing inside. 

In neat but cramped script it reads;

_ My name is Jaqen Levit and like my father before me, I have discovered the truth. I wonder now if his eyes were opened by someone like her, the child of the wolves. Arya Stark.  _

_ I will keep this brief, for I fear even with everything that has happened she will continue to turn her back on her gods. This writing is for the eyes of those who will help her, the eyes of those who love her.  _

_ The Corrupted King has fooled us all. My father saw the truth and tried to stop it, but The Corrupted King’s power is greater than any before and I fear, even now, as I try to finish my father’s work, I will fail. We believed we were doing the work of good in an effort to stop him, but we were wrong. I believed she was a gift to us and I was right. She was put in our path to stop us, and she did. But in the same way she was sent to us, we were sent to her. I will do my part, I can only hope she will do hers.  _

_ To those reading this, she is safe and she will be returned to you, of that I promise, but the cycle must end and she must bear witness to that. _

_ -No One _

“What the hell does that mean?” Jon asks, stepping back as Gendry finishes reading aloud. 

“I have a bad feeling I might know.” Gendry replies, closing the book and tucking it into the inside pocket of his jacket. “We need to go.”

“Go where?” 

“The safe house. I think that’s where they’ve gone.” 

“How do you figure?” Jon asks, following after Gendry as he rushes from the room and down the hall. Lights shine through the window at the far end and a familiar face looking angry and put out appears in the open door. 

“What part of wait until backup arrives did you misunderstand?” Davos asks as they step out of the barn. 

“There’s no time, we need to get to the safe house.” Gendry replies, rushing toward the car. 

“The safe house?” Davos questions turning to Jon for clarification. 

“He thinks that’s where they’re headed.” Jon replies, jogging after him. As he nears the car he hears Davos shout orders to the gathered officers and then like a swarm, they drive away. 

xXx

The safe house is as nondescript as you would expect it to be. A small one story home off to the edge of a suburb outside King’s Landing. You wouldn’t think there was anything valuable here but, the white and blue panel van in the driveway gives away what’s inside. 

Davos’ voice is low as he instructs several officers to check the vehicle. It takes no more than a minute and they come away gesturing that it's empty, save for the Witsec agent bound and unconscious on the floor in the back. 

“Well, they’re going out of their way not to hurt anyone, I suppose that’s a plus.” Davos says from his place beside Gendry. 

“For now.” Gendry replies, pulling a bullet proof vest from the boot of Jon’s car. The others are suiting up as well, getting ready to move on the house as soon as the small team sent up to scout the house returns with the all clear. They’re just about to the house when the front door bursts open and Arya charges out, surprising them all just long enough for her to have to scream;

“Run!” 

Her voice pulls them all from their surprise and the scout team runs after her, providing cover as they make it halfway back before the house shatters into a million shards of wood and glass, sending a fireball up into the air and lighting up the neighborhood. The shock wave radiates out, throwing everyone off their feet, shattering the windows of the houses nearby and setting off the car alarms of every car in the area. 

Gendry doesn’t know how much time passes before he’s aware of the world again. Beside him Davos groans, shifting shakily to sit up. On his other side, Jon is doing the same, having a bit more trouble. The officers around him are in various states of disarray, some unconscious, other’s struggling to get their bearings. His eyes scan the yard, landing on the small grouping of bodies on the lawn. His thoughts catch up with him and he staggers to his feet, woozy and uneven as he forces himself to walk toward them. 

“Arya.” he says, his voice deafening against the ringing in his ears. “Arya.” he says again as he makes it to her. She’s so small next to the officers struggling to sit up, but there she is, relatively unharmed from what he could tell. She rolls over as he kneels beside her, eyes unfocused as she stares up at him. 

Gendry can see the exact moment she realizes who he is, tears springing to her eyes. “You’re okay.” she breaths, face twisting into a sob. “You’re okay.” she repeats as he reaches down, scooping her up into his arms and holding her against him. 


End file.
